*Historical* There wasn’t much room for firemen, but behind these doors was stored a small wooden fire ‘engine’. The fire cart was a basic contraption pulled by horse. Handily placed to pump water out of the pond to deliver to the nearest fire. You can still see a similar fire cart on display at Bourne Hall Museum in Ewell – seen below in use.

The little room by Carshalton Ponds was built soon after the demolition of a cottage in 1836. The home that stood on this spot, was referred to locally as Dame Duffin’s cottage. The wooden-framed cottage could have been 15th century – and here is a recreation of how it looked.

The world’s first municipal fire brigade was established in Edinburgh in 1824. The London Fire Engine Establishment was created soon after in 1832.

Eventually a larger fire station to serve Carshalton was built in Pound Street circa 1894. More about that here.

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It’s said the small room also held a funeral bier, and is called the Bier House. Wikipedia; “A bier is a stand on which a corpse, coffin, or casket containing a corpse is placed to lie in state or to be carried to the grave”.