talk report - april 2006
6 April: Dr Audrey Coney - Martin Mere, Fish, Fowl and Fen
Dr Coney made a welcome return to the Society to give a talk about the history and development of Martin Mere. The Mere was approximately 5 miles long and 21/3 miles wide and covered about 5000 acres.
Because if its historic remoteness it has figured in legend and some believe is the original site of the King Arthur and Lancelot legends. It was second only in size to the Norfolk Broads. The composition of the bed of the Mere differs from side to side and this affected the use that man made of it. During the Ice Age the coast line was at the Isle of Man and as the ice melted and the sea level rose the coastline moved to the east stopping at the sand-dunes of Birkdale, Ainsdale, and Southport which stopped the drainage into the sea, thus causing an inland wet area. Traces of man's occupation of the area can be found at Hightown where there is a prehistoric track-way and the Neolithic footprints at Formby. 'Martin' villa was on the edge of the mere - the name comes from Mere Tun. The Mere itself was never very deep and at its deepest was only 10-12ft. There were several islands in the Mere (Windmill Farm, Little Peel and Great Peel) which were tower houses, from which lights were shone to guide fishermen home and Catholics to Mass at Berry House Farm and Holmeswood Hall. There were two exits from the Mere into the River Douglas at Rufford.
The Scarisbricks of Scarisbrick, the Derbys of Burscough, the Heskeths at Rufford and Holmeswood and the Fleetwoods all had influence over the Mere. The boundary of the West Derby Hundred and the Leyland Hundred goes through Rufford and through the Mere. It was most import as a fishery and anyone could fish with a rod and line with permission but in order to fish from a boat a lease was required from the owner of that stretch of the Mere. Wyke and Midge Hall were two of the fisheries. The deepest part of the sluice was the best eel fishery. Fishermen were allowed to take wildfowl and the fisheries had the right to graze cattle on the islands. This was tightly controlled. The cutting of reeds and willow was allowed for basket making. Bog oak, and pine hardwood were used for making candles. In 1679 Thomas Fleetwood of Bank Hall began the process of draining the Mere using a pumping station the raise the water over the sandbar. A most fascinating look at the history of the area which now has largely gone.