In the sixteenth century, East Stonehouse was a small town prospering from trade with France but suffering from a limited supply of water from local wells and springs. It obtained Parliamentary approval in 1593 to construct a leat, or open channel, to bring water in from outside the town. The Bill submitted to Parliament was in similar terms to the powers obtained by Plymouth in 1585, but unlike Plymouth whose leat took water from Dartmoor, the spring that Stonehouse relied on to supply their leat was only three miles away at what is now known as Torr, near Hartley. The supply was inadequate as Stonehouse grew and, at different times, water was purchased from both Plymouth and Devonport.
“A unique feature of Stonehouse Leat was that its course was marked by a series of inscribed stones.” So states David Hawkings in his definitive account of the Stonehouse leat in his book Water from the Moor.
There is no record of earlier stones, but in the 1850s a series of inscribed stones were erected to mark the course of the leat, mainly placed where the leat crossed a boundary of one of the neighbouring towns, parishes or tythings. The series of five stones, of which four now survive, were erected by the Commissioners appointed under the East Stonehouse Waterworks Act 1851. They were probably erected when the Commissioners carried out improvements. The surviving stones are all inscribed “1593”, date of the original Act, but the actual date of erection is not known.
One of the stones in the series (LSES 6) was erected where additional streams merged and the inscription includes reference to “tributary streams” as well as to “leat and banks”. Now on Peverell Park Road, opposite the junction with Edgcumbe Park Road, it was originally erected where the streams from Rowden Farm merged with the main watercourse. However, it was removed when reservoirs were filled in and has been recently installed at the present location.
Incy Wincy Spider is a popular nursery rhyme and fingerplay that describes the adventures of a spider as it ascends, descends, and reascends the downspout or "waterspout" of a gutter system (or, alternatively, the spout of a teapot or open-air reservoir). It is usually accompanied by a sequence of gestures that mimic the words of the song. Its Roud Folk Song Index number is 11586.