When hundreds of people from all walks of life are oblivious to the dangers of a popular pastime, and sadly lose their lives
What happened?
January 1867 was an exceptionally cold month in Britain and many open water areas froze over. One of these was the boating lake in Regent’s Park in London. Ice skating was a popular pastime in Britain at the time, and many hundreds of people went skating on the lake.
On 14th January 1867, the ice cracked, and twenty-one people dropped into the water but all were pulled out alive.
Overnight, the ice re-froze and the following day, about five hundred people took to the ice. At about 4.00pm (reports of times vary), the ice was heard to crack and almost half of the skaters fell into the water. Many could not swim, were wearing heavy clothing, and they sank. Many were rescued by those watching the skating, but thirty-nine people died from drowning and one from hypothermia (other reports state that forty-one people died). Recovery of all the bodies took several days as the lake kept re-freezing.
Legal Outcome
An inquest was held at the Marylebone workhouse. The jury returned their verdict of accidental death in all forty cases.
What can we learn from what happened?
A truly extraordinary event, and one that clearly would not happen today, and not just because such a body of water would not freeze over.
To think that the lake cracked the day before and so many people had to be rescued, and yet hundreds, many of whom could not swim, took to the ice a day later when it re-froze overnight. Just remarkable. Reports also commented on the death of a man selling roast chestnuts – but he was selling them, with the help of his stove, on the ice.
There were some moving accounts of the tragedy at the time. The newspapers highlighted the extraordinary impact of the accident – ‘in a society divided very much into the have and have nots, with the rich often very rich and the poor very poor, the tragedy did not discriminate between the classes. Every grade of society was represented by the mourners for the lost ones.’
Often historical tragedies target the poor, but ice skating was clearly an activity open to all, and provided an opportunity for all walks of life to enjoy themselves together.
An outcome of the Regent’s Park skating disaster was that the inquest recommended that the depth of the water be reduced. In June 1868, the lake was drained, the bottom levelled and lined with concrete and that the depth would be such that a “person of adult stature—might not be drowned”.
Regent’s Park boating lake is a popular and beautiful attraction in the middle of a busy city. If you visit, then it will worth remembering not just those who lost their lives, but also why the lake is so much safer now.
Source of Information
Wikipedia
British Newspaper Archive