Drinking Fountain and Troughs 003 - Limpsfield Traditional Geocache
Drinking Fountain and Troughs 003 - Limpsfield
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Difficulty:
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Size: 
(micro)
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This is the third of a series of caches placed close to or associated with drinking fountains or animal troughs. The cache is located in Limpsfield and is an example of a Metropolitan Drinking Fountain and Cattle Trough Association granite cattle trough and a drinking fountain. Both were donated by Alice and Horace Berry of Detillens in 1913. The trough bears an inscription “do well unto thy servant”
The Metropolitan Drinking Fountain and Cattle Trough Association was an association set up in London by Samuel Gurney an MP and philanthropist and Edward Thomas Wakefield, a barrister in 1859 to provide free drinking water. Originally called the Metropolitan Free Drinking Fountain Association it changed its name to include cattle troughs in 1867, to also support animal welfare.
Water provision in the nineteenth century was from nine private water companies each with a geographic monopoly, which provided inadequate quantities of water which was often contaminated, as was famously discovered by John Snow during the 1854 cholera epidemic. Population growth in London had been very rapid (more than doubling between 1800 and 1850) without an increase in infrastructure investment. Legislation in the mid nineteenth century gradually improved the situation; the Metropolitan Commission of Sewers was formed, water filtration was made compulsory, and water intakes on the Thames were forced to be moved above the sewage outlets.
In this environment the public drinking fountain movement began, initially in Liverpool where the local government was granted the ability to buy out the private water companies in 1847. It built the first public baths and then encouraged philanthropic public drinking water fountains. This was taken up by Samuel Gurney.
The surviving cattle troughs are mainly large granite ones, in many cases planted with flowers. Earlier designs were of cast iron or zinc lined timber, but both were too easily damaged.
Thanks to Merstham Mafia for allowing me to add to their series.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Onpx evtug hc uvtu.