Here is a lovely picture you may have seen before. Set around 1900 it shows an idyllic country scene with barn and well-trimmed thatched cottage. The woman carries a heavy wicker basket in her right hand while the man idles his time away leaning on the fence. However, this enclosure has a purpose. It is the Village Pound. Animals such as goats etc. were everywhere and sometimes they would get out and wander off. Stray animals would be rounded up and put in this pound. The pound keeper (perhaps leaning on the fence) would charge a fee to get the animal back. The location is just by the bridge over the Lode at the recreation ground – to this day called “Pound Lane”.
September 2023
