Page 36 - The Tale of Two Fountains

THE TALE OF TWO FOUNTAINS
But as fate would have it, Arun came across a copy of a local magazine called ‘Northampton Town Affairs (December 1952). The article titled ‘The Colour of Northampton’ was written by a very well known Northampton historian and writer, Dr. Ernest Reynolds3 which mentioned his surprise at encountering a twin of the Market Square fountain in Bombay.
After reading the article, Jona at once said that she used to see this magnificent fountain on her way to school, as it was situated at the Metro Junction in Mumbai. And it was at this point that our quest for the twin fountain in Mumbai began.
Jona was born in Bombay (now Mumbai) and attended the Cathedral & John Connon High School in South Mumbai. The school bus took her past the Metro Cinema Junction en route to the Fort area of the city. The fountain was not a monument you would miss. The imposing and elaborate structure with its water jets and ornate globe on the top of a beautifully sculptured column stood tall at this junction on a plinth with four steps, very similar to the base of the fountain at the Market Square in Northampton.
Jona distinctly remembers catching a glimpse of the fountain from the school bus, sometimes with young children playing on the steps or dogs drinking water from the trough. She also remembers how missionaries, stump orators and political activists gave speeches from the steps of the fountain. Once a year, on Indian Republic Day on the 26th January in the late 50s, she recalls Bombayites or Mumbaikars driving to South Bombay to see the Republic Day lights on Government and public buildings. Whilst she does not remember floodlights on the fountain, she does recall seeing the column rising high with its dazzling ornate globe light.
Little did she know that this fountain known as the Fitzgerald fountain, was a replica of the Isaac Fountain in Northampton, which is now our home. And if you believe in the feeling of deja vu – well this discovery certainly sparked off that feeling!
The fountain was erected at the Metro Cinema Junction in 1867. The area is popularly known as Dhobi Talao in South Mumbai. It was erected to mark the arrival of Sir William Robert Seymour Vessey-Fitzgerald, a British Administrator and Governor of Bombay from 1867 to 1872. Sir William did some commendable public work in the city of Bombay.
The Fitzgerald fountain remained at this location opposite the Robert Money school (now the site of Jer Mahal) until 1920 when it was moved in front of the Metro Cinema due to the introduction of trams in this area.
Jona and Arun have lived in Northampton since the mid-1970s. It was designated as an ‘expanding town’ – a satellite town to London offering commuters working in London easy access to the City4. The Northampton Development Corporation was established to help the growth of the town in ac- cordance with the Master Plan of 1968. Northampton with its rich history and green spaces became an attractive location for both people and businesses to relocate.
In 1984, the BBC opened a new local Radio Station in the centre of the town and Jona started working there as a presenter in 1985. The Radio Station is sited at one end of Abington Street in the town cen-
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