Used to punish people for crimes such as swearing or drunkenness. Criminals would sit or stand at a wooden frame and the local people would throw rotten
food or even stones at them. The stocks and pillory were used as a punishment throughout the 16th and 17th centuries. Their use declined in the 18th century. It is thought that the
last time the stocks were used in the UK was in 1872 in Newcastle Emlyn.