In 17th century England, in the "pottery district" known for its rich, clay soil, potters would dig holes out of the roads because they did not want to take away from any land that was being used for cultivation. Unfortunately, their "pot holes" made the roads dnagerous, and eventually the practice was forbidden.
I had no idea that was the origin of 'potholes'. Thank you, Margaretha. I shall drop that into a conversation and stun everyone.
SvaraRaderaThat would have been an interesting fact for Priestley to have included in his section called the Potteries of English Journey (which I just wrote about). Fascinating!
SvaraRadera