Scarborough Mere
Encyclopedia
Scarborough Mere is a natural lake in the Weaponness Valley, in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Formerly measuring 40 acres (161,874.4 m²) in area, the construction of the York and North Midland Railway
York and North Midland Railway
The York and North Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which opened in 1839, connecting York, with the Leeds and Selby Railway and in 1840 with the North Midland Railway at Normanton near Leeds.-Origins:...
line from York
York railway station
York railway station is a main-line railway station in the city of York, England. It lies on the East Coast Main Line north of London's King's Cross station towards Edinburgh's Waverley Station...
to Scarborough
Scarborough railway station
Scarborough railway station serves the seaside town of Scarborough in North Yorkshire, England. It lies east of York and is one of the eastern termini on the North TransPennine route operated by First TransPennine Express...
bisected the Mere in 1845. Due to that and other factors, including drainage and landscaping, the surface area of the lake is now approximately 16 acres (64,749.8 m²).
In the 20th century, the Mere was a popular tourist attraction owned by Scarborough Corporation, with rowing boats, a cafe and putting green. There was also a miniature Spanish galleon - the Hispaniola - which made trips across to 'Treasure Island' where holidaymakers could dig for Doubloons. Unfortunately dredging and maintenance of the lake decreased, and the increased silt & weed meant that waterborne activities stopped.
The Mere is now part of the Oliver's Mount
Oliver's Mount
Oliver's Mount is an area of high ground overlooking Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England. It offers impressive views of the town, a tribute monument to the war dead, camping and caravanning at selected times of the year and a cafe but may be primarily known for its motorcycle races...
Country Park, and is managed by the Scarborough Mere Angling Club as a fishing lake, with the southern end used by waterskiers.
A map dated 1766 by Thomas Bowen in 'The Gentlemans Magazine' shows Scarborough Mere as "a lake called Byard's Lake".