Martin Mere is a mere near

Burscough Burscough () is a town and civil parish in West Lancashire in the ceremonial county of Lancashire, England. It is located to the north of Ormskirk and northwest of Skelmersdale. The parish also includes the hamlet of Tarlscough and the Marti ...

, in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

, England, on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain. The mere is a vast

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found ...

, around that was, until it was drained, the largest body of fresh water in England.

History

Martin Mere was formed at the end of the last ice age, when water filled a depression in the

glacial drift In geology, drift is a name for all sediment (clay, silt, sand, gravel, boulders) transported by a glacier and deposited directly by or from the ice, or by glacial meltwater. Drift is often subdivided into (unsorted and) unstratified drift (gla ...

. Since then its size has varied as water levels have risen and fallen. The original giant lake can be seen on

Christopher Saxton Christopher Saxton (c. 1540 – c. 1610) was an English cartographer who produced the first county maps of England and Wales. Life and family Saxton was probably born in Sowood, Ossett in the parish of Dewsbury, in the West Riding of Yorkshire ...

's map from 1579 and stretched from Rufford in the east, to Churchtown (then known as

North Meols North Meols is a civil parish and electoral ward in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England. The parish covers the village of Banks and the hamlet of Hundred End. The population of the parish/ward at the 2011 census was 4,146. His ...

) in the west. To the north of the lake were the villages of Mere Brow and Holmeswood, the site of Holmeswood Hall, built by the Heskeths as a hunting lodge. South of the lake was the Scarisbrick Hall estate, Martin Hall and Tarlefarwood, now known as

Tarlscough Tarlscough () is a hamlet in the West Lancashire district, in the English county of Lancashire. It is roughly (by road) north of the centre of Burscough. Environment The main feature of the hamlet is Martin Mere Wetland Centre, which is a ma ...

. The mere originally drained out in two places; at the western end the arm of the mere known as the Wyke drained into the Pool (or Old Pool) at what is now Crowland Street,

Blowick Blowick is a suburb on the east side of the town of Southport, Merseyside, England. History and etymology Blowick is part of the ancient parish of North Meols and was formerly a detached settlement, on the northern fringe of what is now Southpo ...

, while at its eastern end it flowed into the river Douglas at Rufford. Active management of the mere began in 1692 when Thomas Fleetwood of Bank Hall cut a channel in an attempt to drain it. Further attempts to drain it were made in the 1780s, but effective drainage was achieved only in the mid-19th century, with the introduction of steam pumping. Farms and market gardens were established on the rich soils of the reclaimed land. Between 1974 and 1982 sand from the former lake bed was quarried for use in glass-making at

Mere Sands Wood Mere Sands Wood is a nature reserve between the villages of Holmeswood and Rufford in west Lancashire, England, managed by The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester & North Merseyside. It lies about five miles from Ormskirk. The name deri ...

which is now a nature reserve. Martin Mere canoe

An ancient

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the ter ...

has been excavated from Martin Mere and is on display in the Atkinson Art Gallery and Library."The Crossens Canoe takes pride of place at The Atkinson" https://www.artinliverpool.com/news/the-crossens-canoe-takes-pride-of-place-at-the-atkinson/ , accessdate=15-10-2020

Present

Part of the old mere is now the site of Martin Mere Wetland Centre, a wetland nature reserve managed by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.

References

{{authority control Lakes of Lancashire Geography of the Borough of West Lancashire Ramsar sites in England Burscough

History

Present

See also

References