The oldest known view of Bourne

Photo: Courtesy Don Fisher

This is the oldest known view of Bourne, a water colour painting from 1790 and showing North Street from the corner of West Street. The artist is unknown. Some of the old properties survive although drastically changed, especially the front facades that have been altered to accommodate modern shop fronts. The building on the corner was occupied by the Presgrave Tea Warehouse, an old established business in the town when tea was a new and popular commodity, and the premises have since been rebuilt, but in the same style, and are now occupied by Galaxy Travel.
The purpose of the cart parked in the middle of the street is open to conjecture but evidence of the water pump on the pavement survived into the 20th century. The water was drawn from a well whose origins dated back 700 years. It was discovered in 1960 when a long deep trench was dug in the vicinity to accommodate drainage pipes and is believed to have been of 14th or 15th century in origin. The well became the site of the pump that can still be seen in old prints and photographs of the Market Place.

See also     Archaeology

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