by Trevor Bevins, Local Democracy Reporter.
Repairs have been approved for Dorchester’s historic Town Pump in the county town’s South Street.
The works will include correcting a lean on the Grade 2 listed structure, re-instating a drinking water spout and adding a shallow basin to provide water for dogs.
The works, approved by Dorset Council, will include lifting the column, which was built in 1784, and resetting it onto a restored stone plinth.
The refurbishment plans follow on from other street improvements in the area, part of the town’s Conservation Area, with other changes yet to come.
Architects Crickmay Stark, who will oversee the restoration, say the column appears to lean to the west after being struck by a lorry many years ago.
The pump was built at a time when the town had no piped water supply with much of the town making use of it for their daily water use, apart from more wealthy residents who sometimes had their own wells.
Water from it was also used to wash down the street after the town market had closed for the day. The water supply to the pump was cut in the 1930s or 40s.
Said the architects in a report to Dorset Council: “The drinking water spout to be re-instated will incorporate a lion-head mask based on an eighteenth-century design, reflecting the historic function and character of the Town Pump. This will allow members of the public to access drinking water, reinstating a lost civic amenity.”
