Clue to the past
SIR - Eureka! At last, a possible clue as to why there was a mounting-block in the churchyard wall fronting Church Lane.
Up until a few years ago, it was intact, but, sadly, vandals pushed it over into the churchyard where granite blocks still lie.
I have tried to rouse some interest in getting it restored, but to no avail. I have spoken to members of the Church, the Council, the SVA and the Keith Owen Fund. The KOF did respond, saying it was not within their remit and, anyway, it was not of any real interest.
I totally disagree. It is little details like this which help us to imagine how our predecessors lived.
The farmers who patronised The Old Ship would need somewhere to tether their horses. Where better than the lane behind the hostelry with its back entrance. For his journey home, the mounting-block would come in handy.
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Perhaps, with the renewed interest in the Old Ship, someone younger than me could take up the cause. I was 97 last birthday. I would be very sorry to see this little bit of social history to be lost.
Marjorie Hodnott
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Station Road, 32 Abbeyfield Court, Sidmouth
