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In Hungerford it was rather different. The town pond was half way up the slope of the High Street (outside what is now 35 High Street), and
it served a rather different purpose.
Certainly, in the 17th century, the Town Hall was surrounded by the usual pillory, stocks, whipping-post and ducking-stool. The
ducking-stool would have been wheeled up the High Street where miscreants would have had their public humiliation to correct them of their ways.
But its main purpose was quite different. The abstracts from the Constables Accounts below show just how much effort went into maintaining
the pond full of water.
It was surrounded by rails, and some lime trees were planted around it in 1718. They failed to survive, and were replaced by firs. The pond
was eventually filled up in 1805.
Its purpose was as a reservoir of water for use by the local men to put out any fires in the upper (southern) part of the street. The
northern part of the town was well served by the river Dun, but the slope up the High Street required a water supply on the higher ground - hence the importance of the town pond.
Click for more about fires in Hungerford, or for more about fire
engines.
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 "map_francis Ponda (w)")
 "Town Hall Painting(w)")