Water pump

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A disused roadside cow-tailed water pump erected by Ballycastle Rural District Council c.1939 to serve adjacent labourers' houses.

The pump is located on the S side of a minor road towards the W end of a terrace comprising three pairs of semi-detached and one detached two-storey house.

It is mounted on a low concrete plinth on top of a concrete-capped well. It is of cast-iron construction with a spiral-fluted column, and vertically-fluted bulbous top with two bands around. At one side is a wrought-iron cow-tail handle and at front is a quarter-turn spout with a lug for a bucket handle. Its cap and internal mechanism are now missing.

The pump is enclosed to S and W by a painted cement-rendered wall.

Materials:
Pump body Cast-iron
Cow-tail Wrought iron

Setting:
The pump is at the roadside end of the property boundary between nos 15 and 17 Churchfield Road. Apart from the houses and gardens, the environs are entirely rural and comprise hedged fields.

Historical information

Neither the houses behind, nor the pump itself are shown on the 1922 OS map. The houses first appear in the 1939 Valuation Revision book entry, being noted as seven houses leased by Ballycastle Rural District Council. These were erected under the provisions of the Labourers (Ireland) Acts 1883-1911. It is extremely likely that the pump was erected at the same time to provide a potable water supply.

The pump is not shown on the 1972 OS map, probably because it was defunct by then, having been superseded in the 1960s by a mains supply.

References - Primary Sources:
1. PRONI OS/6/1/9/4. OS 1:10,560 map, Co Antrim sheet 9 (1922).
2. VAL/3/B/1/4A, Valuation Revision Books, 1935-54, p.36A.
3. PRONI OS/11/9/9/1. OS 1:2500 map, Irish Grid map sheet 24-08.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
H-. Alterations detracting from building
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

S. Authenticity
R. Age
T. Historic Importance
X. Local Interest
Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance
Z. Rarity

Evaluation

This is a typical manually-operated cow-tailed water pump set within an L - shaped wall. Although of utilitarian function, it nevertheless has a considerable proportion of its surface embellished with decorative fluting. The diagonal fluting around the column is said to mimic the sackcloth insulation wrapped around it in winter to minimise freezing. Its relationship with the well underneath, from which it drew water, is clearly evident. Its close proximity to the adjoining houses explains why the pump was erected where it was. The fact that its cap and internal mechanism are missing detracts from the completeness of its historic character, but it is otherwise authentic. It is also of local significance, having served the local community for many years prior to the advent of mains water in the 1960s. Roadside pumps such as this were once fairly common but are now quite rare, particularly in Moyle.