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In the course of writing the book the authors discovered a previously unknown manuscript containing minimum and maximum temperature data from April 1815 and ascertained that the sequence of continuous readings began on 14 November 1813, slightly earlier than the generally held starting year of 1815. The experienced Observatory Assistant John Lucas noted in the register on that day a discussion with his incredulous colleague, Mr Main, regarding the temperature observation: Mr Main thought the minimum reading should have been 5°F rather than the observed 0.5°F. As such it will appeal to readers interested in the history of meteorology, to analysts looking to verify historic weather events and to climatologists conducting further analysis of the data. [Extracted from the article]