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18th century map of Whittlesey Mere

Whittlesey (Whittlesea) Mere

History of Whittlesey Mere

1839 famous ice skating match took place. William Needham from March was defeated by Tomblin of Doddington. Needham however became undisputed champion until 1850.

The Mere was the great centre of ice-skating. It covered 2,000 acres and was nowhere more than 5 feet deep.

After Christmas in 1840 there is a newspaper report, printed in A Fenland Chronicle, of six thousand people gathering on the Mere to skate and watch the races.

The Illustrated London News, 1850 has a picture of a skating race.

In 1851 the last of the great inland lakes of the region, Whittlesey Mere between Ramsey and Peterborough, vanished.

Whittlesea Mere (MoC)

Whittlesey Mere after drainage (MoC42/68)

The top of the wooden post was once level with the surface of the ground.

Read Enid Porter’s essay: Whittlesey Mere

Whittlesea Mere, Enid Porter notes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whittlesey_Mere

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This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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