24 NOVEMBER A threemonth-long frost fair began on the frozen River Thames.

Between 1300 and 1850, the period now known as the Little Ice Age, the river often froze for weeks, or even months, at a time. Making the most of this phenomenon, Londoners held frost fairs on the river, with stalls, games and street entertainers. Bonfires were lit on the ice and cooked food was sold.

But in 1831, the opening of the new five-arch London Bridge put an end to the frost fairs. Without the old bridge’s 19 narrow arches and their breakwaters, the water flow could no longer slow down enough for it to freeze.