AT their most recent meeting, members of Thurrock Local History Society were treated to a presentation illustrated by Paul Hounsnell and Julia Finnan from the Purfleet Heritage Centre on the history of gunpowder and the Purfleet Magazines.

Invented by the Chinese in the 9^th century gunpowdere spread it around the world, helped by Crusades to the Middle East and the Silk Road. It was first used in anger at the Battle of Crecy in 1346.

Gunpowder is a mixture of charcoal, sulphur and 75% saltpetre (potassium nitrate).

In 1561 Queen Elizabeth I paid £300 to German engineer Gerard Honrick for the secret – manure and urine being the main ingredient. Manure was built up in beds and soaked with urine, turned each week, adding more urine or sewer water.

It was collected from the land and taken to nitrate fields and could be identified by taste! Petremen had the right to go anywhere – farms, inns, theatres etc and even churches. If you objected you could be arrested.

It was first stored 1346 in the Tower of London. The Great Fire of London in 1666 came too close and Samuel Pepys, secretary to the Admiralty, suggested a firebreak and saved the day.

Gunpowder was eventually moved in 1698 to a purpose-built place at Greenwich, away from centre of the capital. Over the years Kings petitioned to have it moved, with George III having surveys done in 1759.

Purfleet was chosen and building work on five magazines started in 1761. They were 151ft x 52ft, with walls 5ft 3in thick and a ceiling 3ft thick, plus sand, which has been there since 1763. Costs nearly tripled from £36,000 to £60,000.

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Magazine Number 5 at Purfleet - now home to the Purfleet Heritage and Military Centre.

It is very cold inside, even in summer. Air conditioning was by air taken by ducts from the roof to underfloor. No.5 Magazine now has the only overhead working cranes in the world. There is no metal in the building, wooden beams supporting the four cranes.

In 1605 there were only 36 barrels stored in England, but the magazines stored 10,800 barrels. If it had gone up it would have had devastating consequences and taken out London, with up to 50,000 in times of war.

The Proof House of 1765 carried out testing and by 1862 Purfleet Garrison was a massive concern. The 1769 clock tower is still there but by 1973 it was all in disrepair.

In 1760 each magazine had 25 civilian staff. They had to remove their shoes, wearing moccasins instead, with no zips or metal buttons on clothing. It was almost total darkness with candles. Doors were coated with highly polished copper sheeting, providing some light. Apprentices had highly polished hand mirrors for light. Waltham Abbey and Faversham off-loaded barrels in warehouses. 10% went to the proof house for testing before storage.

The gunpowder arrived by water - no motor or sails – moved by women to the River Lee, offloaded into Thames, up to Purfleet. This was not regulated, showed by the 1874 Macclesfield Bridge disaster at Regent's Canal – the captain decided to light his pipe! New regulations came in, with only gunpowder, nothing else to be carried.

The Proof House.

Many famous visitors came to Purfleet, including Captain Cook, Isambard kingdom Brunel, Queen Victoria, Churchill, Darwin and Benjamin Franklin who experimented with electricity and brought about a lightning conductor.

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In the past one man's job was to listen for thunder, when the doors were locked. Purfleet supplied many ships, including the Great Eastern, HMSs Endeavour, Beagle, Bounty and Enterprise moored at Long Reach, always a military presence.

Gunpowder was profit-making for the Crown and sold to anyone. In the civil war ships from either side loaded.

The magazines were never bombed in WW2; Hitler wanted our arsenal of weaponry. There is even a ghost – Morriss, a drunken worker fell off a crane and a barrel landed and killed him, the story told on wall graffiti. Apparently he only appears before women.

In 1962 the doors were finally shut. Nos 1-4 were demolished, having ironically had to be blown up. No.5 Magazine is a scheduled ancient monument and is now home to the Purfleet Heritage and Military Centre. It is open to visitors several days a week and events are planned.

This was a comprehensive talk, something to think about when lighting our bonfires on November 5^th.

Our next meeting is at 8pm on Friday, 21 November at St John's Church hall, Victoria Avenue, Grays, when Michael Holland's talk will be on the Swing Riots in Essex 1830-1831. Visitors are welcome.