Is this bracket necessary?

[gatormc9]

1971 302-2V originally a no AC car. The previous owners had a Montgomery wards AC installed, but it's missing pieces so I'm taking out the rest. There is a bracket attached from the water pump to the alternator, is this necessary or just an added piece for an AC pulley or something. See the attached pic.

 

[Don C]

It looks to me like it was an add-on for an idler pulley.

 

[gatormc9]

Yeah, I think it was part of the aftermarket AC. I looked at some other pictures of 302's and they all seem to have some kind of bracket between the alternator and water pump. Plus, it wasn't hurting anything, so I put it back on for now.