Extracts from Hampshire Advertiser Nov 18 1837

At 23.10 on Tuesday Nov 7 th the night was fine and clear when a fire was spotted at a merchants store owned by King Witt and Co at the bottom of the High Street 140 yards from the Quay. It was a large brick building 100ft x 120ft deep with 4 floors above a basement. The stock consisted of ‘sheet and pipe lead in immense quantities, shot in bags, turpentine in carbuoys, oil, varnish, pitch and some gunpowder.’

It was an hour before the engine arrived and a further 20 minutes before any water was obtained. Various people arrived to help move the stores to a place of safety. There were 50 x 12 gallon carbuoys of turpentine on the 2 nd floor which the volunteers were lowering on ropes through a trap door to the basement when one was dropped so everyone on the lower floor was paddling in turpentine. An explosion followed which threw people against pillars and caused a wall to collapse trapping people underneath.

George Diaper was found in the general store and was identified by some clothing by his sister who came from Hamble (monument lists him as 27, other sources say 22 or 23).