The following two examples (amongst many) to put the Boscastle flood
into perspective:

http://www.dundee.ac.uk/geography/cbhe/

note the 1957 event in particular ... remarkably similar.

1847
On 16th July, 1847, a waterspout burst on Davidstow Moor, the watershed
where the Camel and Inney (despite their opposite destinies) take their
rise. The water collected in the valleys and forced a passage in two
directions, down the Inney and the Camel. A wall of water from 12 to 18
feet above the usual level of the river swept down the Camel Valley
carrying everything before it. Gam Bridge stayed the flood for a moment
but soon gave way and the infuriated water attacked Wenford Bridge with
a regular bombardment of tree trunks and other things plundered from the
meadows. A mineral train happened to be in the station at Wenford
Bridge, and the driver with great presence of mind drove his engine at
full speed down the valley shouting to the people to leave the
riverside. He was not a moment too soon. Wenford Bridge broke beneath
the strain and Poleys Bridge followed suit. Tresarret Bridge was swept
away. Helland Bridge showed that the mediaeval bridge builders knew
their business, for despite the depth and narrowness of the valley, the
waters failed to break it, but rising above the parapet, swept on and
brought their battery of trees and hayricks against the ancient bridge
of Dunmeer. This was soon swept away together with the railway bridge by
its side. A train was approaching the bridge at the moment of its
destruction but the driver was able to bring it to a standstill. The
lowest railway bridge at Pendevy floated gaily down stream and would
have done much damage to Wadebridge had not men in boats secured it with
ropes and chains. When the flood subsided, it was found that the valley
from end to end had been devastated. All the bridges but Helland and
Wadebridge (the two oldest) were in ruins, and for 12 months remained
impassable. Many years later pieces of hay, straw and mud could be seen
in the branches of trees at Dunmeer 20 feet above ordinary water level."


1957
"In 1957 there was a terrible flood. There had been continuous
torrential rain which came down the Valency River from the moors and
hills. The power of the water damaged the top bridge [in Boscastle] and
flooded surrounding cottages and shops. People were trapped and had to
be rescued from their homes. Charlie Berryman, the local bandmaster,
drowned when he fell in trying to retrieve a chair. "The first warning
was given by Mrs Elizabeth Whitehouse who was riding her horse up the
valley, saw the rivers coming and galloped to give advance warning. It
came with such a rush, like a huge wave, that no-one had a chance to get
furniture out of their rooms. Miss Rachel Beadon was in the call box at
the end of the bridge ringing Norman Webber to ask for help, the flood
came on so fast that she could not get out...and two of the young
fishermen crawled across on the parapet of the bridge with a rope and
rescued her. The river overflowed into the whole of the Valency Valley ,
over the lawns and into cottages, shops and garage, many household items
and furniture were washed into the sea."

Martin.

--
FAQ & Glossary for uk.sci.weather at:-
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/booty.weather/uswfaqfr.htm

"Martin Rowley" wrote in
message ...
The following two examples (amongst many) to put the Boscastle
flood
into perspective:

http://www.dundee.ac.uk/geography/cbhe/

note the 1957 event in particular ... remarkably similar.


1957
"In 1957 there was a terrible flood. There had been continuous
torrential rain which came down the Valency River from the moors
and
hills. The power of the water damaged the top bridge [in
Boscastle] and
flooded surrounding cottages and shops. People were trapped and
had to
be rescued from their homes. Charlie Berryman, the local
bandmaster,
drowned when he fell in trying to retrieve a chair. "The first
warning
was given by Mrs Elizabeth Whitehouse who was riding her horse up
the
valley, saw the rivers coming and galloped to give advance
warning. It
came with such a rush, like a huge wave, that no-one had a chance
to get
furniture out of their rooms. Miss Rachel Beadon was in the call
box at
the end of the bridge ringing Norman Webber to ask for help, the
flood
came on so fast that she could not get out...and two of the young
fishermen crawled across on the parapet of the bridge with a rope
and
rescued her. The river overflowed into the whole of the Valency
Valley ,
over the lawns and into cottages, shops and garage, many household
items
and furniture were washed into the sea."


This is a brilliant resource. Thanks for the link, Martin.

The isohyetal (rainfall) map referred to in the U.Dundee data-base,
while rather speculative, indicates an area more than 2km x 1km
just east of Camelford receiving over 9 in (229mm). The northern
edge of the map just reaches the southernmost portion of the
Valency catchment and suggests at the very least 7in (178mm)
here.

Part of the MetMag article not quoted, but which is very
interesting and emphasises the complex relationship between
rainfall, river catchments, and consequent floods, says this:

"... previous floods at Camelford, in particular that of August 30,
1950, which was much more serious than the 1957 flood though
the rainfall was very much less and did not give rise to any
measured fall of as much as 2in. The conclusion reached is that
if the location of the heaviest rainfall on June 8,1957, had been
displaced by only 1 to 2 miles to the northwest or north,
the damage in Camelford itself would have been disastrous
and might have been accompanied by serious casualties or
loss of life."

Philip Eden

On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 08:49:49 +0100, "Martin Rowley"
wrote:

The following two examples (amongst many) to put the Boscastle flood
into perspective:

http://www.dundee.ac.uk/geography/cbhe/

note the 1957 event in particular ... remarkably similar.

1847
On 16th July, 1847, a waterspout burst on Davidstow Moor, the watershed
where the Camel and Inney (despite their opposite destinies) take their
rise. The water collected in the valleys and forced a passage in two
directions, down the Inney and the Camel. A wall of water from 12 to 18
feet above the usual level of the river swept down the Camel Valley
carrying everything before it. Gam Bridge stayed the flood for a moment
but soon gave way and the infuriated water attacked Wenford Bridge with
a regular bombardment of tree trunks and other things plundered from the
meadows. A mineral train happened to be in the station at Wenford
Bridge, and the driver with great presence of mind drove his engine at
full speed down the valley shouting to the people to leave the
riverside. He was not a moment too soon. Wenford Bridge broke beneath
the strain and Poleys Bridge followed suit. Tresarret Bridge was swept
away. Helland Bridge showed that the mediaeval bridge builders knew
their business, for despite the depth and narrowness of the valley, the
waters failed to break it, but rising above the parapet, swept on and
brought their battery of trees and hayricks against the ancient bridge
of Dunmeer. This was soon swept away together with the railway bridge by
its side. A train was approaching the bridge at the moment of its
destruction but the driver was able to bring it to a standstill. The
lowest railway bridge at Pendevy floated gaily down stream and would
have done much damage to Wadebridge had not men in boats secured it with
ropes and chains. When the flood subsided, it was found that the valley
from end to end had been devastated. All the bridges but Helland and
Wadebridge (the two oldest) were in ruins, and for 12 months remained
impassable. Many years later pieces of hay, straw and mud could be seen
in the branches of trees at Dunmeer 20 feet above ordinary water level."


1957
"In 1957 there was a terrible flood. There had been continuous
torrential rain which came down the Valency River from the moors and
hills. The power of the water damaged the top bridge [in Boscastle] and
flooded surrounding cottages and shops. People were trapped and had to
be rescued from their homes. Charlie Berryman, the local bandmaster,
drowned when he fell in trying to retrieve a chair. "The first warning
was given by Mrs Elizabeth Whitehouse who was riding her horse up the
valley, saw the rivers coming and galloped to give advance warning. It
came with such a rush, like a huge wave, that no-one had a chance to get
furniture out of their rooms. Miss Rachel Beadon was in the call box at
the end of the bridge ringing Norman Webber to ask for help, the flood
came on so fast that she could not get out...and two of the young
fishermen crawled across on the parapet of the bridge with a rope and
rescued her. The river overflowed into the whole of the Valency Valley ,
over the lawns and into cottages, shops and garage, many household items
and furniture were washed into the sea."

Martin.


The thing that strikes me about these accounts, and also this week's account, is
the use of the wording "wall of water" and "such a rush, like a huge wave".

Not having any great knowledge of how rainfall permeates the soil and runs off
in these events I would be inclined to think that 2 hours of very heavy and
consistent rainfall would produce a 2 hour gradual rise in the level of the
river, not the few minutes hinted at the reports.

This suggests to me either a "pooling" effect of the 2 hour rainfall, which was
suddenly released, or that the bulk of the 200mm or so of rain fell in a very
short time, measured in minutes. It could, of course, be just plain hyperbole,
suggesting that the Victorians were just as prone to journalistic exaggeration
as modern reporters.

Martin

Wow! I just posted this on Ukww - nearly the same thing!

"Further to this, here is a snippet from a report in Farmers Weekly from
farmer near North Petherwin in the Ottery valley:
"My dad and I were shearing and the phone went. It was a neighbour who was
in a panic. He told us we'd got to shift our animals up the hill quick
because there was a wall of water heading down the valley towards us...We
were amazed - we'd had no rain at all all afternoon....there was an
incredible roar. We rushed out and two miles away up the valley we could see
this wall of water thundering towards us. It was almost half a mile wide and
filled the valley...You could hear trees being snapped in half and hedges
being torn up...some of the trees were foury-foot high...we've got sofa and
chairs and all sorts of things sitting in our fields. It has been quite
unreal"

There is a picture of the valley fully filled (it's an open mature river
valley btw).

It looks on the map like the Ottery drains a large part of the area were
most rain fell."







Peter

"Martin Rowley" wrote in message
...
The following two examples (amongst many) to put the Boscastle flood
into perspective:

http://www.dundee.ac.uk/geography/cbhe/

note the 1957 event in particular ... remarkably similar.

1847
On 16th July, 1847, a waterspout burst on Davidstow Moor, the watershed
where the Camel and Inney (despite their opposite destinies) take their
rise. The water collected in the valleys and forced a passage in two
directions, down the Inney and the Camel. A wall of water from 12 to 18
feet above the usual level of the river swept down the Camel Valley
carrying everything before it. Gam Bridge stayed the flood for a moment
but soon gave way and the infuriated water attacked Wenford Bridge with
a regular bombardment of tree trunks and other things plundered from the
meadows. A mineral train happened to be in the station at Wenford
Bridge, and the driver with great presence of mind drove his engine at
full speed down the valley shouting to the people to leave the
riverside. He was not a moment too soon. Wenford Bridge broke beneath
the strain and Poleys Bridge followed suit. Tresarret Bridge was swept
away. Helland Bridge showed that the mediaeval bridge builders knew
their business, for despite the depth and narrowness of the valley, the
waters failed to break it, but rising above the parapet, swept on and
brought their battery of trees and hayricks against the ancient bridge
of Dunmeer. This was soon swept away together with the railway bridge by
its side. A train was approaching the bridge at the moment of its
destruction but the driver was able to bring it to a standstill. The
lowest railway bridge at Pendevy floated gaily down stream and would
have done much damage to Wadebridge had not men in boats secured it with
ropes and chains. When the flood subsided, it was found that the valley
from end to end had been devastated. All the bridges but Helland and
Wadebridge (the two oldest) were in ruins, and for 12 months remained
impassable. Many years later pieces of hay, straw and mud could be seen
in the branches of trees at Dunmeer 20 feet above ordinary water level."


1957
"In 1957 there was a terrible flood. There had been continuous
torrential rain which came down the Valency River from the moors and
hills. The power of the water damaged the top bridge [in Boscastle] and
flooded surrounding cottages and shops. People were trapped and had to
be rescued from their homes. Charlie Berryman, the local bandmaster,
drowned when he fell in trying to retrieve a chair. "The first warning
was given by Mrs Elizabeth Whitehouse who was riding her horse up the
valley, saw the rivers coming and galloped to give advance warning. It
came with such a rush, like a huge wave, that no-one had a chance to get
furniture out of their rooms. Miss Rachel Beadon was in the call box at
the end of the bridge ringing Norman Webber to ask for help, the flood
came on so fast that she could not get out...and two of the young
fishermen crawled across on the parapet of the bridge with a rope and
rescued her. The river overflowed into the whole of the Valency Valley ,
over the lawns and into cottages, shops and garage, many household items
and furniture were washed into the sea."

Martin.

--
FAQ & Glossary for uk.sci.weather at:-
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/booty.weather/uswfaqfr.htm

On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 08:49:49 +0100, "Martin Rowley"
wrote:

1957
"In 1957 there was a terrible flood. There had been continuous
torrential rain which came down the Valency River from the moors and
hills. The power of the water damaged the top bridge [in Boscastle] and
flooded surrounding cottages and shops. People were trapped and had to
be rescued from their homes. Charlie Berryman, the local bandmaster,
drowned when he fell in trying to retrieve a chair. "The first warning
was given by Mrs Elizabeth Whitehouse who was riding her horse up the
valley, saw the rivers coming and galloped to give advance warning. It
came with such a rush, like a huge wave, that no-one had a chance to get
furniture out of their rooms. Miss Rachel Beadon was in the call box at
the end of the bridge ringing Norman Webber to ask for help, the flood
came on so fast that she could not get out...and two of the young
fishermen crawled across on the parapet of the bridge with a rope and
rescued her. The river overflowed into the whole of the Valency Valley ,
over the lawns and into cottages, shops and garage, many household items
and furniture were washed into the sea."

The Times reports this in its issue of June 4 1958 (rather than 1957).
It describes the water in the Valency rising 15 feet in 20 minutes,
after a cloudburst in the North Cornwall moors.


--
Paul

On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 15:48:45 GMT, (Paul C) wrote:

The Times reports this in its issue of June 4 1958 (rather than 1957).
It describes the water in the Valency rising 15 feet in 20 minutes,
after a cloudburst in the North Cornwall moors.

It is definitely 1958 - I have full online access to The Times back
issues and the event is reported on page 10 of the 4 June 1958 edition


--
Paul

On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 15:54:15 GMT, (Paul C) wrote:

On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 15:48:45 GMT, (Paul C) wrote:

The Times reports this in its issue of June 4 1958 (rather than 1957).
It describes the water in the Valency rising 15 feet in 20 minutes,
after a cloudburst in the North Cornwall moors.

It is definitely 1958 - I have full online access to The Times back
issues and the event is reported on page 10 of the 4 June 1958 edition

And another one from The Times

Feb 7 1963
Floods start as the thaw sets in

.....The harbour village of Boscastle in north Cornwall was flooded
when thousands of gallons of water swept debris down the steep valley
and blocked the river Jordan.....


--
Paul

"Paul C" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 15:48:45 GMT, (Paul C) wrote:

The Times reports this in its issue of June 4 1958 (rather than
1957).
It describes the water in the Valency rising 15 feet in 20
minutes,
after a cloudburst in the North Cornwall moors.

It is definitely 1958 - I have full online access to The Times
back
issues and the event is reported on page 10 of the 4 June 1958
edition

You are dead right. The description appears in British Rainfall
for 1958, yet no gauge in the district caught more than two inches
(50mm). However, there were no gauges in the Valency catchment
during that year, the nearest were at Bossiney, Camelford, and
Delabol, so it is possible that a highly localised fall occurred
over
the moors between the Camel and Bossiney catchments.

The June 1957 flood at Camelford also happened, of course.

I've alerted the Dundee database people.

Philip Eden

On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 17:08:06 +0100, "Philip Eden"
philipATweatherHYPHENukDOTcom wrote:


"Paul C" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 15:48:45 GMT, (Paul C) wrote:

The Times reports this in its issue of June 4 1958 (rather than
1957).
It describes the water in the Valency rising 15 feet in 20
minutes,
after a cloudburst in the North Cornwall moors.

It is definitely 1958 - I have full online access to The Times
back
issues and the event is reported on page 10 of the 4 June 1958
edition

You are dead right. The description appears in British Rainfall
for 1958, yet no gauge in the district caught more than two inches
(50mm). However, there were no gauges in the Valency catchment
during that year, the nearest were at Bossiney, Camelford, and
Delabol, so it is possible that a highly localised fall occurred
over
the moors between the Camel and Bossiney catchments.

The June 1957 flood at Camelford also happened, of course.

The Times report of the 1957 Camelford flood states that 7.06 in of
rain fell in the 12 hours up to 9 pm and that between 1pm and 4pm 5.48
inches fell. "Hail followed the rain and in some places hailstones
were knee deep in the road"


--
Paul

"Paul C" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 17:08:06 +0100, "Philip Eden"
philipATweatherHYPHENukDOTcom wrote:


"Paul C" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 15:48:45 GMT, (Paul C) wrote:

The Times reports this in its issue of June 4 1958 (rather than
1957).
It describes the water in the Valency rising 15 feet in 20
minutes,
after a cloudburst in the North Cornwall moors.

It is definitely 1958 - I have full online access to The Times
back
issues and the event is reported on page 10 of the 4 June 1958
edition

You are dead right. The description appears in British Rainfall
for 1958, yet no gauge in the district caught more than two inches
(50mm). However, there were no gauges in the Valency catchment
during that year, the nearest were at Bossiney, Camelford, and
Delabol, so it is possible that a highly localised fall occurred
over
the moors between the Camel and Bossiney catchments.

The June 1957 flood at Camelford also happened, of course.

The Times report of the 1957 Camelford flood states that 7.06 in of
rain fell in the 12 hours up to 9 pm and that between 1pm and 4pm 5.48
inches fell. "Hail followed the rain and in some places hailstones
were knee deep in the road"


--
Paul


The 7.1mm fell at Rough Tor View, Camelford. The Delabole gauge overflowed!
Another gauge just outside Camelford recorded 6.33 inches. The flood level
in Boscastle appears to have been just as high in 1957, based on
descriptions and photographs. The main difference this year was the damage
done by dozens of cars crashing into buildings.

There is no doubt the shape and position of the SW peninsula plays a large
part in the number of intense rainfall events in north Cornwall and N Devon.
A line of cloud up the peninsula, near the north coast when the gradient
wind is a humid S or SW, is a normal event in summer as the sea breeze
convergence sets in. (I have some photos on my web site at
www.easterling.freeserve.co.uk/wpage6.html .
--
Graham
Penzance