Kidmore End & Gallowstree Wells

Representation: Nick Room Wells Manager (KEPC)

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE WELL IN THE VILLAGE OF KIDMORE END

The History of Kidmore End, compiled by the Rev John Ernest Smith-Masters, sometime Vicar of the Parish, and published in 1933, describes the provision of four ‘public wells by public subscription’ in the late 19th Century. The Kidmore End well was sited at the crossroads at the very centre of the village, outside the main entrance to the Church which was consecrated in 1852, and close to the village school which was opened in 1876.

Initially, the well was ‘under the charge of the Vicar and Churchwardens’ but was taken over by the Parish Council in 1895. Wire chains were used for drawing the water with a large bucket at each end, one going down as the other was brought up. They were worked by hand, and each operation took about five minutes.

In 1906, the South Oxfordshire Water Company connected the village to a recently built reservoir at Woodcote, nearly five miles away and the well became less used.

During its 150 years, the well has been routinely renovated to ensure it is safe and remains as an important example of the village’s heritage. It is often decorated with flowers, most recently to mark the late Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee and the Coronation of King Charles III in 2023.

The well was registered by Historic England in 1985 as a Grade II listed structure (List Entry Number 1059507). It is recorded as: “Late C19. Timber framing; wood shingle pyramidal roof. Cast iron machinery. In prominent position outside church. Included for group value.”

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE WELL IN THE HAMLET OF GALLOWSTREE COMMON

Gallowstree Common Well is a historic well in the parish of Kidmore End. Listed Building Grade (II) 1052181: (Post Medieval – 1833 AD to 1900 AD). The Wellhouse is immediately west of Well Cottage. It’s located in The Hamlet, and the wellhouse is a listed building with low red brick and flint-panelled walls. The area is named after an oak tree that was formerly used as a gallows. The  last hanging is believed to have been in 1825 for sheep stealing. The Well itself is no longer used but is in good condition. The Well is enclosed within a wellhouse and winding gear late C19. The Wellhouse has low red brick and flint-panelled walls, is a landmark in the village and has been saved from demolition multiple times. 

Square on plan. Low red brick and flint-panelled walls with brick diaperwork and brick buttresses at the corners supporting thin brick piers surmounted by a pyramidal roof clad in plain tiles and bands of scalloped tiles; wooden spike finial at apex of roof and wrought-iron fleur-de-lis at the corners. The sides are open above the low walls, the south west side has an iron grille and the south east side is entirely open and gives access to the well. The iron winding gear is intact and is supported on a wooden frame; an inscription records the maker :- R.J.and H. Wilders Patent Wallingford, Berkshire. The well is 300ft deep and it is shown on the 1873 O.S. map. Listing NGR: SU6911780218

Dept of Environment/DCMS, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, South Oxon List 74: 472-0/6/10001, p.54(a) (Unspecified Type). SOX260.