Technology and the Big House in Ireland, c. 1800–c.1930 By Charl ...

square (C), spout (D), internal leather piston bucket with its central clack or nonreturn valve (E), and the cutaway (F). The pumping action is described later. Because of the softness of lead, this type of pump required a wooden supporting box. The two sides of the box were grooved to accommodate the flanges (C), and one side about 3 inches (8 cm) thick carried the fulcrum pin for the handle; the other side was about 2 inches (5 cm) thick. Front and rear were usually about 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick. The box made it more difficult to steal the valuable lead and, when stuffed with cow hair, afforded some protection against frost damage.³ Because of their construction, installation and repair of these pumps required the cooperation of the plumber, the carpenter, and, sometimes, the blacksmith employed on estates. The Lough Rynn weekly returns book in the Leitrim papers includes early 1860s entries of a carpenter working at the casing of such a pump with a plumber and later entries of the carpenter repairing pumps.⁴

Although lead pumps that needed wooden casings to support them continued to be made and used until the start of the twentieth century, inexpensive cast-iron pumps became available from the 1850s onward.⁵ The simple “cow-tail” lift pump—examples of which can still be seen in the streets of rural settlements in Ireland—could only do what the name implies: lift water to the level of the pump. This was all that was required in many situations to get well water to the surface. A large estate, such as that at Tullynally Castle, required the use of many water pumps, of which a large proportion would have been of the simple lift type. Their widespread distribution, in at least nine locations, can be seen in the Tullynally estate expenses book covering the years 1857 to 1862.⁶ The action of the lift pump, shown in cross section in plate 3, was such that, if it had not been in use for some time, it was often necessary to remove the detachable domed top and fill the pump body with water until the piston was immersed, thus priming the pump. The water also softened the leather seal, making it more effective. Raising the handle moved the piston downward. This action opened the clack valve upward, allowing a quantity of water to enter the pump body above the piston. The handle was now depressed, thus raising the piston and closing the clack