January

As an island that frequently sells itself on being reliably sunny – and one that relies on accurate forecasts for its ongoing sea-based trade – it’s understandable that the weather should have been a frequent concern in Jersey’s history. January, over several years, saw it register record highs and lows, extreme storms and even its first ever weather observation, courtesy of local Jesuit priests.

It was also the month in which local broadcaster Channel Television officially disappeared from our screens when it was fully subsumed into the larger ITV network, and the Guernsey-set drama Enemy at the Door, which had been filmed entirely in Jersey, debuted on the same network.

Two disastrous fires broke out, one of which entirely destroyed the Town Militia arsenal because authorities had failed to learn the lessons of the earlier blaze at Fort Regent, which had come so close to igniting the gunpowder stored there. If it had done so, it would have changed the face of the island forever and dealt a serious blow to Jersey’s ability to defend itself at a time when France was frequently making worrying noises about mounting an invasion – as indeed it did on 6 January in the Battle of Jersey.

Conservationist Gerald Durrell, who founded Jersey Zoo, was both born in, and died in January, the island lost a respected former Bailiff and a pioneer of self-powered flight took one final voyage into the afterlife. An enormous hoard of 70,000 gold coins was uncovered in a farmer’s field, and a Jersey-based company revealed plans to build a nuclear shelter capable of housing 12,000 people.

 

Also in January…

Jersey’s first weather observation is made 1st
LibertyBus is founded 2nd
Missing parents are declared dead 3rd
Alfred Bedane is awarded Israel’s highest honour for wartime bravery 4th
Jersey registers its lowest ever temperature 5th
French troops launch the Battle of Jersey 6th
Conservationist Gerald Durrell is born 7th
American POWs escape from a Jersey camp 8th
Death of Jersey pioneer of self-powered flight 9th
Mainland doctor’s Jersey mercy dash 10th
Murder jury passes guilty verdict 11th
Jersey is hit by extreme weather 12th
French sailors are arrested on an extradition request 13th
Jersey appoints its first Foreign Minister
Channel Television disappears 14th
Night of the Fox is first published 15th
Death of Jersey sewage pioneer 16th
Octogenarian murder suspect dies after court appearance 17th
King’s saviour George Carteret dies 18th
Fire almost destroys Fort Regent 19th
Lost GoPro is returned to its Jersey owner 20th
Final coins are removed from the Celtic hoard
First episode of Enemy at the Door broadcast 21st
Jersey beggar is sentenced to hard labour 22nd
Town militia arsenal is destroyed by fire 23rd
Jersey company plans massive nuclear shelter
Mainland-born bailiff dies in Jersey 24th
Channel Islands Airways is established 25th
83rd Regiment of Foot is founded 26th
Freedom Church buys the Odeon cinema
Jerriais poet Jean Dorey is born 27th
The genesis of the Société Jersiaise 28th
Deputies meet to decide if they want BBC or an independent broadcaster
A familiar name is sworn in as Bailiff 29th
Alfred Hitchcock’s Jersey connection 30th
Jersey Airways demands Guernsey monopoly
Conservationist Gerald Durrell dies
The Seigneur of Samarès is born 31st