Built by a Quaker family business founded in 1778, this cast iron pump provided running water for the residents of Carshalton from around the mid-1800s. On it is the inscription J Tylor and Sons Newgate Street EC.
Installed in Pound Street this ‘pitcher pump’ would draw fresh Spring water from the ground, using a hand-operated lever on the side.
Before running water was installed in people’s homes, this area would have been a popular meeting point for locals, and contraption’s like this would become known as ‘the parish pump’.
Whether it was good enough to drink from is unclear, but some say Carshalton may have escaped the London Cholera outbreak, being at the source of fresh spring water.
The fine example of an original Victorian parish pump is Grade 2 listed.
Love all the info you supply. Hidden in plain sight is a great way of describing all these treasures that we walk past every day
Thank you so much
Thank you. Good to know it’s appreciated 😊