In a deviation from most of the memorial fountains documented here, these drinking fountains were not erected for human use.
The fountain in Loanhead, Midlothian, Scotland was actually a drinking trough for horses with a small basin for dogs at ground level. The trough was a circular cast iron basin supported on legs in the form of horses’ hooves. A central fluted column was capped with a central lamp roofed in with scales of opal glass that cast the light downwards (design number 223.) A crown encircled by flowers was surmounted by a trio of spiked orbs. It was manufactured by Walter Macfarlane’s Saracen Foundry, and donated to the burgh of Loanhead by Provost Hugh Kerr to mark the Coronation of King Edward VII, on 26 Jun 1902. It was removed in September 1933.
An identical fountain is located at Belmont & Main Street, Rondebosch, Capetown, South Africa. A mining magnate named George Pigot Moodie, donated the horse trough to the people of Rondebosch in September 1891. The lamp atop the fountain was the first to have electric street lighting in the area. It was declared a national monument on 10 April 1964, and was restored recently in 2013. Read more of the history of this fountain.
Two additional fountains very similar in structure are located in the Capetown area:
- In Mowbray at the intersection of Durban and Camp Ground Roads is a fountain donated by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. A shield on the post is inscribed: SPCA 1899. The base differs from the previous examples, and is not supported by horse legs. The central stanchion supports the structure which is seated on a circular plinth.
- The second fountain is located at Jubilee Square off St George’s Street in Simon’s Town. It was erected in memory of Queen Victoria’s Jubilee as identified on the shield: Queen Victoria Memorial 1837. This fountain is supported by a central column and four short pedestals. The column rises from the basin where four lion masks spout water. Four projecting tendrils are evident and may have suspended cups allowing humans to drink from the spouting water whilst horses drank from the large basin. The difference in the lamp finial may be the result of damage or replacement.
Memorial Drinking Fountains 