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This newspaper page contains 6 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Patriot
Location
London, Middlesex, United Kingdom
Date
Jul 27, 1837
Page
6
Report of Mr Cocking's fatal parachute descent from a balloon at Vauxhall Gardens. The apparatus failed when the parachute collapsed during descent, the basket detached, and Cocking died from a severe head wound after being found near Lee and taken to the Tiger's Head Inn.
The balloon with an umbrella like parachute lifted from the car with Mr Cocking in the wicker basket while Mr Green and Mr Spencer rode in the other car. The ascent began around eight, with steady, perpendicular motion and no wind adding to the majesty. The parachute balloon remained in sight for about ten minutes as ballast was discharged and the craft rose smoothly.
The article details Mr Cocking suffering severe head injuries and broken ribs before dying after a parachute descent failed. It notes tin tubing rings, wooden side bars, and a damaged parachute that collapsed during ascent. Mr Green witnessed the tragedy and later found Cocking’s apparatus, while experts debated buoyancy and strength.
A balloon ascent with Mr. Cocking and Mr. Green ends when Cocking cuts loose the parachute at about five thousand feet. The balloon plunges, gas escapes, and Cocking dies after a fatal impact. Green survives in a weakened state. Parachute and debris later displayed at Lee-green bar with admission fees.
Mr. Cocking, 62, a noted artist and scientist, had plus several ascents with Mr. Green and trusted completely in the experiment that ended disastrously. He refused to retract his plans despite advice to postpone the ascent.
The narrative details the planned ascent of the Vauxhill balloon with Mr Cocking and parachute attached, including ballast adjustments, delays, and attempts to reach 8,600 feet. A failure to shed ballast safely leads to an updraft catastrophe, gas loss, and a rapid, perilous descent with improvised air sacs to prevent suffocation.
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