Every Thursday we like to post a picture of something we've found online that inspires us to do something similar at the farm. Sort of our own blog bulletin board so that we can eventually look back and someday, hopefully anyway, recreate it...enjoy!
We love these old manual well pumps. I'm not sure if they have some sort of 'official name' but we always thought one would look cool in a flower bed or next to the house like the one above. Non functioning of course but they still look nice. There probably aren't many around anymore that are used but you never know.
My Grandmother used to tell me about getting water from one of these when it had a cup hanging on it and she always said it was the coldest and best water ever on a hot Summer day.
We actually have an old capped well at the lake. We have talked about reopening it but a regular well would be a leaf catcher (too many trees). This would be a great idea!
ReplyDeleteOh, that would be cool huh? Just put this there, maybe build a flowerbed around it, it would be pretty!
DeleteThem old antique fashioned well hand pump are rather expensive if a person can find any. Say one in a booth at our local antique Mall and the person was asking over $300.00 for his but I'm sure you can find replicas of one.
ReplyDeleteI have a smaller one (red) that we used to use on the farm when I was growing up. We had no running water in the kitchen but the red hand water pump so if we wanted hot water to do dishes, take a bath, etc. we had to heat up the water first.
A couple of years ago I repainted that red pump and has been sitting outside as part of the yard art.
I figured they would be pricey. You'd think even if they didn't work that would be a good deal, ha. They probably do have replicas that are non functioning. I've always wanted a bright red fire hydrant in the yard. Not sure why, ha.
DeleteThat would be a great addition to your Farm art.
ReplyDeleteMy mom had one for years; my sister has it now. I think you can still find them in junktique places in the smaller Texas towns in this area.
Will have to keep an eye out.
DeleteI am inspired. What's your next project for putting all these inspirations into action?
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We'll see what happens first. Last couple of years have been clearing spots. And then the stuff around the house. But that's out of control now. So I might need to start in a small spot and see how it goes. That's why I post these so we have something to go back to and go "hey, remember that really cool ________ that we saw?" ha.
DeleteMy dear Aunt Jane lived in a big old farmhouse in Indiana and I remember her Kitchen . . . she had a modern sink with running water, but down the counter from it was another sink with an old pump like this one in it. I always thought it was so charming and wonderful that they left it in the kitchen. Any time they had a storm and lost their power in the well house, they still had fresh cold well water from this old pump. Pretty smart as well as charming :)
ReplyDeleteNow that is such a neat memory. Having a sink with a hand pump? Wow! Hmmm, now my mind is starting to wander.
DeleteIn our neck of the woods (northern Michigan), that's called either a well pump or a hydrant. And the reason the water was so cold is because the majority of them here are designed to cope with freezing weather, when you put the handle down and stop the water flow, it forces any water in the pipe back down at least 4ft so the pipe won't freeze. The closer you get to the source of the water the cooler it is. That's the concept behind swamp coolers and heat pumps.
ReplyDeleteWow, that's interesting about the freezing. I didn't know that. Cool! I heard the stories about the water being so cold. Of course ours as it comes out is pretty cold but I'd like to experience it really really cold fresh out of the ground.
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