An essential part of civil architecture in Haute-Saône, the fountain-washhouses are found in nearly all the villages in the department.
An integral part of daily village life in the old days, they came in a wide range of different architectural styles, and some are in fact listed buildings. Designed as far back as the 18th century and then more frequently in the 19th century, in order to bring water into the villages by enclosing the springs, and to meet the needs of a growing population and livestock, they are generally decorated with flowers and very well-maintained. Washhouses and fountains were once important parts of social life, like shops and the church. Women gathered there on laundry days and people met up there when drawing water.
The architects all vied to be the most imaginative, designing washhouses and fountains in many different styles, from the simplest to the most sophisticated. Examples of note include the covered washhouse with arcades in Ray-sur-Saône, a frequent construction style in the regions of Gray, Vesoul and Lure; the one in Étuz, a reference to the Ionic temples of ancient Greece, like those in Boult, Fontenois, Semmadon, Confracourt, etc.; the uncovered fountains in Fallon and Fondremand; the one in Fontenois-lès-Montbozon, covered with a zinc dome and canopy with a finial on top; the ones in La Malachère, d'Oiselay, etc. Some, like the one in Seveux, have a trough for animals. There are also the unusual town hall-washhouses, built above the spring and the trough, like in Bucey-lès-Gy, Dampierre-sur-Salon and Beaujeu.
