Location

Corner of Tower Lane

Description

Tate reports that "In the olden time there was a well within an arched recess of the wall of Clayport Tower; but a new pant was built for this well in 1752, at a cost of more than £10—carter's charges being then 1s. 6d. per day, and a master mason's daily wages only 1s. 4d. The tower was pulled down in 1804. Tate lists both a "Clayport High Pant (formerly Kidland's Well)", and a "Clayport Low Pant". We believe this is the pant that Tate referred to as "Clayport Low Pant", and that the pant outside Westgate House is the one that Tate refers to as "Clayport High Pant". It is also referred to as "Tower Well Pant" in newspaper reports.

Pants in this location have been particularly accident prone. There was an accident in 1871 (see below) when a carriage and horse knocked the top off the pant, and killed a child. At the time the pant was described a being "of some antiquity". Subsequently plans were submitted to rebuild the pant, and the structure shown in the old photographs below resembles those plans. It is unlike any of the other 18th century pants so we suspect that the rebuilding did take place, and that the pant shown below dates from shortly after the 1871 accident. In any case, this pant no longer exists. It was destroyed again, by a runaway bus, in 1948, when the driver used the pant to arrest its descent down Clayport Bank after the brakes had failed.

No sign can be seen now on the ground, except for a manhole covering the point where the water supply emerged.

In February 1871. Fatal Accident in Clayport Street (Alnwick Mercury)

Owner

Not applicable

Status

Not applicable

Condition

Not applicable

Suggestions for improvement