Great Fire of Newcastle and Gateshead - Property Destroyed

Property Destroyed

In Gateshead, beside the less serious damage to windows and property generally, all that part of the town from the Church and Church Walk to the river, lying east of Bridge Street and comprising Hillgate was more or less destroyed. The whole of Canon Street, situated on the south side of St. Mary's Church was a mess of ruins. The houses on Church Walk were so shattered and demolished as to be no longer safe for human habitation. As to properties on the waterfront, the following were destroyed:

• Singer's vinegar factory
• A clump of tenements
• The bond warehouse
• Carr's timber yard
• Wilsons Worsted manufactory
• Bulcrauig's engine manufactory

Banks of tenement housing on the hill behind the mill and warehouse were variously levelled, greatly damaged and consigned to the flames.

On the Newcastle side:

• The Custom House roof and every window was removed, every door ripped from its hinges
• Broad Garth entry - property damaged fronting the Quay
• Fenwick's entry - much injured by fire and partially destroyed
• Plumbers chare - nearly all of the warehouses burnt down
• Hornsby's chare - property completely destroyed
• Colman's chare - Totally burnt down
• Pallister's chare - Ditto
• Peppercorn chare - Ditto
• Grinding chare - considerably burnt down, property at front destroyed
• Dark entry - front property much injured
• The Exchange & Town Clerk's Office - shattered roof and windows, thrown completely into disarray.

The estimated loss, calculated some months after the event, and taking account of foregone rents, was not less than £500,000. Much of the property was insured - well in excess of £130,000 of claims were documented to have been made within the year, with more private insurance claims going unrecorded in the official history. Equally, many firms and individuals were uninsured or underinsured.