Informations directionnelles

Rentrer dans Omerville par la rue Charles de Gaulle. Au niveau de la fourche, prendre à gauche, puis encore à gauche. Ensuite, tourner à droite dans la rue du presbytère. Passer le long de l’église, puis continuer tour droit. Vous arrivez face au manoir Mornay-Villarceaux

The old footbath
Evidence of the former agricultural nature of French Vexin

 

 

On the edge of the village...

The Omerville pond – water trough collects rainwater and runoff from the Aubette de Magny watershed. Located just outside the village, this large pond was where the animals came to water in the evening on their way back from the fields and pastures. Its originality lies in its large size, trapezoidal shape and the quality of its mortar bonded limestone walls, covered with a stone ledge. The high back wall was used to support the earth of the fields at the rear. The floor was originally fully paved.

 

 

... One of the many pond - water troughs of French Vexin

The communal pond of Omerville also served as a footbath: its long slope paved with sandstone allowed the herds to enter fully into the water. The many horses, cattle and sheep from the nearby farms came here to drink and bathe. At the end of the nineteenth century, Omerville numbered around 70 horses, 150 cattle and a thousand sheep. This natural pond, whose masonry certainly dates back to the eighteenth century, was used throughout the nineteenth and up until the mid-twentieth century, when breeding in the French Vexin began to decline. Today, the pond only holds water temporarily. A small bed of bulrushes has formed at its centre.