Prochain point : lat="49.07375" lon="1.716917"
Chaudry washhouse
Fed by a small brook
The lack of running water...
If there’s one thing Vienne-en-Arthies has never lacked, it’s water!
But while it is present everywhere, it's always in small quantities. It can’t have been easy to wash or rinse the laundry in the little Chaudry brook. So by building a washhouse, a reservoir of water was created to make the houswives’ work easier. As there was no running water in the houses, washhouses were used in this village for a long time. Which explains why they are so well preserved! In 1932, the municipality expressed concerns about wastewater from Aincourt sanitorium polluting the indispensable springs. In 1936, plans were made to provide drinking water facilities, in view of the various contaminations affecting the streams. But the project was held up by the war. It was twenty years later, in 1959, that Vienne-en-Arthies finally conducted the work on collecting and distributing water, with the help of the state and the department.
... Offset by the number of washhouses
Chaudry washhouse was restored in 2006 through public subscription, with the help of the Heritage Foundation and the Natural Park of French Vexin. Nothing to stop those who want to revive the "good old days" from coming here to wash their clothes!
