Year 2 went on a trip with Richard to the Quayside to find out more about The Great Fire of Gateshead and Newcastle. This time we went separately and Class 6 went on Tuesday and it was super soggy but lots of fun. Class 5 went on Thursday and luckily it was dry and warm.
The first thing we did was walk to the metro and make sure we didn’t slip through the gap when we got on the train. Next we walked for ten minutes to get to the Quayside to meet Richard who is also known as That History Bloke.
After that Richard told us some information about the fire. For example, it started in 1854. Then we walked over the famous Swing Bridge. When we were in Gateshead we pretended we were fire fighters and had to pump or spray the water to try and put out the blaze. Guess what? It did not work! What a hard job that was!
We found out the fire started in a cloth factory and spread quickly because lots of the buildings were made of wood. The fire spread to the other side of the River Tyne and now Newcastle was on fire too. How terrible that was!
Finally went to Bessie Surtees house and did a little drama. The parent helpers even had to pretend to be on fire! We all had to be houses on fire. The bad news was some of us burned down but the good news was some of us survived. This was because some houses got chopped down to stop the fire spreading!
What a fantastic and interesting historical trip!
“I learnt that the warehouse belonged to Charles Bertram” – Divya
“My best part was being in Bessie Surtees house” Tom G
“A fantastic fact is that the fire turned blue when the sulphur exploded” – Iona
“My favourite part was pretending to put out the fire” Charlie
