May Day Weather 1912-1968
The first day of May was traditionally a time for merry making. It was sometimes known as Garland Day because young men and women gathered flowers and made them into garlands which were carried around their community. The origins of celebrations on 1 May are lost but probably began when people wanted to thank a number of deities for the end of winter and the arrival of better weather. Christianity accepted and embraced the customs, and turned a blind eye to some of the excesses of celebrating. There were attempts to ban May Day celebrations in the late-sixteenth and seventeenth centuries but the spirit of rebirth and regeneration was too strong and, although many of the activities were 'watered down', they continued. Indeed, they still continue. May Day is recognised as a Bank Holiday and all sorts of events are organised around the country.
At Flintham, Nottinghamshire, Fred White, the village shopkeeper, kept a note of the day's weather from 1911. His daughter carried on the tradition until the 1970s. So, it is possible to see whether the May Day weather in Flintham was suitable for an outdoor celebration. Looking down the list below there were a number of years when any planned event would have been rained off. Some May Days were cold enough to make sense of the traditional saying 'cast not a clout till May be out'. Anyone planning a May Day walk in 1967 probably looked out of the window and decided to stay at home!
| 1912 | Fine, warm. Rent paid |
| 1913 | Fine, warm, bright |
| 1914 | Showers, very cold |
| 1915 | Showers, wet night |
| 1916 | Showers, bright |
| 1917 | Fine, bright, beautiful day |
| 1918 | Fine, bright |
| 1919 | Fine, bright |
| 1920 | Showers |
| 1921 | Sunday (The shop was not open on Sundays so the weather was not recorded) |
| 1922 | Fine and bright, rain night |
| 1923 | Very dull, fine |
| 1924 | Fine all day |
| 1925 | Cold with rain |
| 1926 | Heavy rain till 4pm. General coal strike commenced |
| 1927 | Sunday |
| 1928 | Dull and damp morning |
| 1929 | Rain showers. Chesterfield trip (Fred White worked at Chesterfield, 1900-1910, and had many friends there) |
| 1930 | Fine, bright |
| 1931 | Fine, bright |
| 1932 | Sunday |
| 1933 | Fine, bright, cool |
| 1934 | Very bright, fine, warm |
| 1935 | Fine , bright, cool |
| 1936 | Hot, bright, fine |
| 1937 | Warm, fine, bright |
| 1938 | Sunday |
| 1939 | Rough, cold |
| 1940 | Fine, dull, visit to Chesterfield |
| 1941 | Fine, bright, cold wind, first swallow |
| 1942 | Fine, bright |
| 1943 | Fine, very cold wind |
| 1944 | Fine, bright |
| 1945 | Fine, very cold |
| 1946 | Fine, dull |
| 1947 | Rough and cold |
| 1948 | Wet and very cold all day |
| 1949 | Sunday |
| 1950 | Fine, bright, warmer |
| 1951 | Fine, bright, cold |
| 1952 | Fine, showers, dull, cooler |
| 1953 | Fine, bright, cool. Mrs Bond bought ladies cycle (Muriel clearly thought this was an event worth noting) |
| 1954 | Fine, bright, cooler |
| 1955 | Sunday |
| 1956 | Fine, bright, warmer |
| 1957 | Fine, bright, warm |
| 1958 | Fine, bright, very warm |
| 1959 | Fine, heavy showers, cool |
| 1960 | Sunday |
| 1961 | Fine, bright, warmer, rain later |
| 1962 | Fine, dull, bright, later cool |
| 1963 | Rain, heavy, brighter, later cool |
| 1964 | Fine, showers, cool |
| 1965 | Fine, bright, cooler |
| 1966 | Sunday |
| 1967 | Dull, snow and hail showers, cold |
| 1968 | Dull, cool shower, bright later |