Very active in the region, the Heritage Foundation will sign an agreement this Saturday with the Utelle town hall to launch the subscription for financing.
Historical Background
The commune of Utelle includes several hamlets, including Saint-Jean-la-Rivière. The washhouse, dating from the 19th century, is located along a valley, at the entrance of the village.
The creation of washhouses resulted from a collective awareness of the importance of public health and basic hygiene principles. Thus, communes equipped themselves with basins located at the bottom of a meadow, below a spring or fountain, a stream, or a canal. For generations, it was an important place of community life for women. The washhouse of Saint-Jean-la-Rivière is part of the history of the village’s inhabitants who have always known it.
The Restoration Project
The washhouse consists of a basin supplied with water from the valley, circulating through a masonry gutter on the walls, as well as a drying rack and a roof that deteriorates every year. It is necessary to renovate this roof as quickly as possible because the risk of collapse increases with bad weather. A testament to a past way of life, the restoration of the washhouse has an educational and touristic objective.
