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Built in 1864, it was renovated in 1923.
Oh! Vaï! As Roger used to say: ‘L’eau, elle va toujours à la pente’… So the water from the fountain up there, eh, bè! : it flows, flows, all the way to the washhouse…
What a hassle that laundry was! A real chore! 2 or 3 times a year, and it takes several days each time!
First, the linen has to be soaked in large tubs, then placed in a heavy wooden vat which is taken out of the greenhouse, covered with a sheet and sprinkled with ash, then watered, watered, first with cold water which is then collected and poured back in… After a night’s rest: boil the water!
Because now we’re starting all over again, with hot water that we pour back, heat and reheat… It’s never-ending! Another night’s rest before taking it out of the vat. O ! Poor thing! It’s impossible to wash one’s dirty laundry as a family: the whole village gets involved… And everyone has their say: that one’s underwear, that one’s sheets… There’s plenty to chat about! But once it’s out, it has to be rinsed, and then… then it has to be taken down to the wash-house down there, to Les Sences, all wet and heavy, on the esquine, the wheelbarrow or the aï, and even the children help.
But in 1864, Emile had an idea: to fertilize his vegetable garden just below the parking lot, he set his sights on potash! The potash in the rinse water, because of the ashes! You can see him talking to himself in front of the Terrace wall. He mumbles. Parle soulé, they call him. And then one day, he’s going to mull things over with the mayor… It never occurred to him to build a LAVOIR! A washhouse, there, just under the square… a washhouse? He pays for everything… (does Emile have any money?) and… in exchange, he collects the dirty water. A LAVOIR! A washhouse in exchange for dirty water: the sun must have been beating down on him!
2 years! 2 years to find the stones and channel the water. What a project! everyone hopes: will he do it, won’t he? All the women hope… 2 years… Finally, one day it’s inaugurated, in 1866! Women came and came. What a joy to be able to wash close to home! The piece of Marseilles soap even stays hidden under the beam, near the pillar for small laundry.
The toad also enjoys it: he’s a self-proclaimed guardian who loves his washhouse too much. Look out! Gare, when you get too close, he doesn’t like to be disturbed: he puffs himself up and spits. A good excuse for some who don’t wash their underwear very often!
And l’Emile, eh bè, l’Emile, pays back his pennies…: he sells us his beautiful vegetables…
Text by SUSINI/MARIANI Nadine
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