A piece of writing mounted on the Fye Bridge in Norwich , England says it marks the place where a `` cucking '' stool had been in place from 1562 â `` 1597 . It also says that `` strumpets '' ( prostitutes ) and common scolds were ducked there . A plaque on the Fye Bridge in Norwich , England claims to mark the site of a `` cucking '' stool , and that from 1562 â `` 1597 `` strumpets '' and common scolds suffered the punishment of dunking there .