Spring Renovations

Many generations have stopped to refresh themselves with a drink from the cold waters of the natural spring at Fessie and Beck's. After the farm got electricity in the 1950s, a pump was added to the spring to allow the water to be pumped into the Pennington household. When Fessie and Beck visited us in Greenville, they always brought jugs of water from the spring with them, saying that they just couldn't stand to drink the tap water provided by the city of Greenville. Years later, the spring got a reputation for its amazing powers of fertility. Rumor was that a drink or two of the spring water would cause women to become pregnant.

Other than a regular cleansing of the well, usually on the hottest day of the year when some unlucky person got the honor of descending into the cold water to remove any debris, the spring has remained pretty much the same throughout the years. Until recently. Last fall, Chip Mills undertook a renovation of the environs of the spring and made several improvements. The top photo was taken a few years ago while the bottom two photos were recently made and show the improvements. The well cistern is located behind the white door (the door will be sporting a stained glass window once the right one is found) and a copper tube funnels the water into the trough which is lined with bricks. The water from the tubing spills onto a grist mill stone salvaged from the nearby English Branch ("the creek") over thirty years ago. As Chip will tell you, it is still a work in progress. WWFS? What Would Fessie Say!

Happy Birthday, Chip! Thanks for your passion!