Landmark restored by pub owners
ONE of Soham’s most iconic landmarks has been refurbished by the owners of a town pub.
The Steelyard Weighbridge, attached to The Fountain Inn public house in Churchgate Street, was built in the 17th century and is believed to be one of only two working examples in the country.
Pub owners John Hartley and Zoe Crowther gave the machine a makeover as part of a wider refurbishment of the Grade II listed watering hole. The work was completed last week.
Mr Hartley told the Journal: “The Weighbridge was starting to fade into the background and we felt it would be a shame to carry out all this refurbishment without bringing it back to life. It soon became a real labour of love.”
Contractors gave the weighbridge a lick of paint before Mr Hartley spent around 40 hours painstakingly cleaning up the mechanisms used to operate it.
“We put some new lights in the garden and it looked brilliant. You could see up to the roof of the weighbridge and all the old beams. I spoke to the council and asked if it would be okay for me to tidy it up a little bit.
“I went up there and was amazed to see all the old metalwork, cogs and wheels. I cleaned it all up and stained the wood to help preserve it.
“I am really pleased with the result, it looks fantastic. I took some photos of the mechanisms and I am going to put one in the garden so people can really see what they’re looking at.”
Mr Hartley said new lighting had also been installed at the front of the pub so people could see the weighbridge, which has also been incorporated in The Fountain’s new logo, at nighttime.
The weighbridge was used to weigh up to four tons of agricultural produce, such as hay and straw, to an accuracy of within two ounces.
It was used up until 1879, when the Ely to Newmarket railway line was opened, enabling farmers to take their goods to Newmarket for weighing instead.
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