Survey Data
Reg No
15400613
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Social, Technical
Original Use
Water pump
In Use As
Water pump
Date
1870 - 1900
Coordinates
235105, 264412
Date Recorded
16/11/2004
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Freestanding cast-iron water pump, erected c.1885, comprising banded cylindrical shaft with fluted head having fluted spout, ‘cow tail’ curvilinear handle, and fluted ogee-dome cap with finial. Set on concrete base and surrounded by a low modern limestone wall. Located towards the northwest end of Ballinalack village.
Appraisal
A typical late nineteenth-century water pump, of a standard design than is usually encountered throughout rural Westmeath. This particular example is very well-maintained. Water pumps played an important social role in the nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries by providing a communal water source before the development of mains water supply. his cast-iron pump now serves as an attractive piece of street furniture, aesthetically enhancing the streetscape of Ballinalack.