Re: Please ID item shown on pic.
I'm not positive, but I think you'll probably find a manual bilge pump attached on the other side of the bulkhead. There would be a socket handle that would go on the post you see, and you rock back and forth to pump the bilge. That's a pretty common older style sailboat arrangement so you can use a manual diaphragm pump (Guzzler or similar) from the cockpit.
Carl