A very old clock

L3 Day 85 cycled to Walton on Thames for the first time in 2021.
Although there is a smart new bridge part of the old bridge is still alongside for cyclists and pedestrians and is called the Anzac Way. Lots of injured New Zealand soldiers who came back to Britain after being injured in WW1 were looked after in the Mount Felix Hospital nearby. The War Office requisitioned the Mount Felix Estate, the large Italianate Villa and associated outbuildings were converted into a hospital. By 1915 it had 350 beds and a fully equipped operating theatre. The only surviving estate building is the Clock Tower, now containing offices...the 18th century clock still works and you can see the pendulum swinging through the window above the front door. During the first lockdown this building was being renovated and it now looks very smart. The Walton shopping centre and the main street look very sad as so many shops and restaurants are now empty. The Debenhams there closed a while ago and today was being used as a vaccination centre.

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