The Howard Memorial Fountain

The Howard Memorial Fountain is a memorial fountain built around 1880 to commemorate the Honorable Mrs. Mary Greville Howard, who passed away in 1877. Constructed from sandstone ashlar, the fountain is designed in the Gothic style and takes the form of a medieval cross with an octagonal plan. It features a high plinth made up of four steps, with a circular bowl set into the front. The shaft of the fountain is divided into two stages, with inscriptions on three sides of the first stage. The upper stage has trefoil panels, a carved coat of arms on the front panel, and monogrammed initials M G H on the other two panels. The design includes linked hoodmoulds with animal-mask stops, a three-tier offset, and a pinnacle adorned with trefoil panels and an apex cross. The inscription on the shaft reads: "THIS CROSS & FOUNTAIN / ARE ERECTED IN / MEMORY OF THE HONORABLE / MRS MARY GREVILLE / HOWARD BY THE PARISHIONERS OF / ASHTEAD AND MANY / OF HER RELATIONS AND FRIENDS SHE WAS BELOVED / AND HONORED / DURING A LONG LIFE SPENT IN / DOING GOOD AND / MOURNED BY ALL WHEN TAKEN TO / REST ON OCT. 19 1877 / AT ASHTEAD PARK AGED 92 HER WORKS DO FOLLOW HER."