At a Town near Chartham, the Lead of the Church rolled up together, and blown off from the Church above 20 Rod distance, and being taken up afterwards, and weigh'd it, appear'd to weigh above 2600 weight.
At Brenchly in the Western Parts of Kent, the Spire of the Steeple which was of an extraordinary hight was overturn'd; the particulars whereof you have in the following Letter, from the Minister of the place.
SIR,
According to your request, and my promise, for the service of the publick, I have here given you an Account of the Effects of the late Tempestuous Winds in the Parish of Brenchly, in the County of Kent, as freely and impartially as can be consistent with the Damages sustained thereby, viz.
A stately Steeple, whose Altitude exceeded almost, if not all, in Kent, the height whereof, according to various Computations, it never in my knowledge being exactly measured, did amount at least to 10 Rods; some say 12, and others more; yet this strong and noble Structure by the Rage of the Winds was levelled with the Ground, and made the sport and pastime of Boys and Girls, who to future Ages, tho' perhaps incredibly, yet can boast they leaped over such a Steeple, the fall thereof beat down great part of the Church and Porch, the damage of which to repair, as before, will not amount to less than 800 or 1000 l. This is the publick loss; neither does private and particular much less bemoan their Condition, for some Houses, and some Barns, with other Buildings, are quite demolished; tho' Blessed be God, not many Lives or Limbs lost in the fall, and not one House, but what suffered greatly by the Tempest. Neither were Neighbouring Parishes much more favoured; but especially, a place called Great Peckham, whose Steeple also, almost as high as ours, was then blown down, but not so much Damage to the Church, which God preserve safe and sound for ever.
This is the nearest account that can be given, by your unknown Servant,
Tho. Figg.
As the above Letter mentions the fall of the Spire of Great Peckham, we have omitted a particular Letter from the place.
In or near Hawkhurst in Sussex, a Waggon standing in a Field loaden with Straw, and bound well down in order to be fetch't away the next day, the Wind took the Waggon, drove it backward several Rods, force't it through a very thick Hedge into the Road, and the way being dirty, drove it with that force into the Mud or Clay of the Road, that six Horses could not pull it out.
The Collector of these Accounts cannot but enter the Remarks he made, having occasion to Traverse the County of Kent about a Month after the Storm; and besides, the general Desolation which in every Village gave almost the same prospect; he declares, that he reckoned 1107 dwelling Houses, Out-houses and Barns blown quite down, whole Orchards of Fruit Trees laid flat upon the Ground, and of all other sorts of Trees such a quantity, that tho' he attempted to take an Account of them, he found 'twas impossible, and was oblig'd to give it over.
From Monmouth we have a Letter, that among a vast variety of Ruins, in their own Houses and Barns; one whereof fell with a quantity of Sheep in it, of which seven were kill'd: The Lead of the great Church, tho' on the side from the Wind, was roll'd up like a roll of Cloth, and blown off from the Church.
I chose to note this, because the Letter says, it was upon the North-side of the Church, and which seems to confirm what I have observ'd before, of the Eddies of the Wind, the Operation whereof has been very strange in several places, and more Violent than the Storm it self.
At Wallingford, one Robert Dowell, and his Wife, being both in Bed, the Chimney of the House fell in, demolish'd the House, and the main Beam breaking fell upon the Bed, the Woman receiv'd but little Damage, but the Man had his Thigh broke by the Beam, and lay in a dangerous Condition when the Letter was wrote, which was the 18th of January after.
From Axminster in Somersetshire take the following plain, but honest Account.