Vestecký pond
There was a time when our pond in Vestec was simply called "the manor pond". And rightly so. Since 1700 it belonged to the Dolní Břežany estate, which was under the administration of the Prague archbishopric. The estate knew well that fish farming was a relatively good investment with a quick return. Almost every village had at least a pond for geese and ducks, and of course also for fish.
Even in Vestec there were enough ponds and ponds and the "manor" was the largest and most profitable. That is why it has its own page in the old chronicle. It is true that the Břežany manor managed the pond, but it did not have the same pond as the Vestec manor. As the chronicler writes, the pond was magnificent and grew nice carp. The annual catch was in metres, so how could the locals resist. It was somewhat appropriated, much to the chagrin of the owners. The latter put an end to everything. In the 1880s, the pond was drained "because of the pride and proximity of the village" and the whole area was sown, of course. However, this somewhat unexpected procedure of letting the pond go raised the level of discontent among the locals and they started to grumble mightily:
" It can't stay like this, because cattle, poultry need water."
Then the mayor of the village, Mr. Skřivan from Šátalka No. 19, supported by the landowner M. Havlíček and the innkeeper Grünwald from Šátalka, took a decisive and significant step. He went to Prague and directly to the Vice-Governorship of the Kingdom of Bohemia and intervened there for the interests of the village.
How did he do? Believe it or not - successfully. The archbishop sold the pond and a large margin to the village.
And for how much? 2,000 gold pieces. Now a few numbers for comparison to give you an idea of what the Austro-Hungarian gold piece was worth. For example, a teacher's service from the municipality was 500 zloty, a sub-teacher received only 180 zloty. And for 20 thousand gold pieces you could buy a small brewery.
Today's Vestec pond has an area of 3.2 ha. Under its surface you will find fish of various species, but I believe also of a different taste than 120 years ago. If you have a fishing ticket and a bit of luck, you'll enjoy Peter's Pond.
Who drowned in the pond: the young Mr Kulhavy in 1916 and an older, probably insane lady from Krč in the 1960s.