Drinking Fountain In Recreation Ground

The drinking fountain in the recreation ground is a memorial fountain built in 1898, designed by architect J D Mould from Silver Street Chambers in Bury. It was funded by public subscription to honor the life of Abraham Barlow. The fountain is made of grey Aberdeen granite and stands approximately 2.5 meters high. It features a solid three-stage pier topped with a ball finial, resting on a step plinth and a square foundation made of four large sandstone slabs.

On the north side, which faces the entrance to the recreation ground, there is a semicircular bowl with remnants of a pipe and a fixture for a drinking cup set within a round-arched recess. Above this bowl, a bronze plaque displays a medallion portrait of Alderman Barlow in bas relief, signed by F G Floyd SCS. The south side features an inscription carved in ornate capital letters in shallow relief, which reads: "This fountain was erected by public subscription to the memory of the late Alderman A Barlow JP of Wellfield and Hampson Mills, Bury, as a testimony of the esteem in which he was held by those among whom he lived and laboured and to commemorate the gift of this Recreation Ground to the town of Bury by his son John Barlow Esq JP." Additionally, there is a small round-arched recess at the base on the east side, along with remains of piping.