
Trentham Lake Weir - Trentham Estate, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, UK
N 52° 57.073 W 002° 11.685
30U E 554101 N 5867147
The cascading weir is located at the southern end of the lake in the gardens of the Trentham Estate, on Stone Road in Trentham.
Waymark Code: WM17FH7
Location: West Midlands, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 02/12/2023
Views: 3
The cascading weir is located at the northern end of the lake in the gardens of the Trentham Estate, on Stone Road in Trentham.
The water flows from the lake over cascading weir under a wooden footbridge and into the River Trent that flows parallel to the lake along the eastern boundary of the Trentham Estate.
"
Trentham LakeAt the heart of Trentham Gardens is the spectacular, mile-long, Capability Brown-designed Trentham Lake. Studded with small islands the Lake is alive with the sights and sounds of a wonderful array of wildlife. The circular lakeside walk takes in views of the River Trent, ancient wildflower meadows and woodlands, through the cascading weir and along atmospheric nature trails."
SOURCE: (
visit link)
"
Cascade WeirLord Gower, the owner of the estate in the 1700’s, ordered the diversion and damming of the River Trent – the 3rd largest river in England at the time! You can imagine how powerful and influential he was in the area.
The lake was created by Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown, gardener to royalty of the time, who was commissioned in the 1750s to expand the lake, including:
Creating a dam or weir at the south end of the lake to assist with flood management – this is the cascade you can see here! It was once further up the lake near to where the otter hide is now. It has a very important role in stopping the gardens from flooding when we have heavy rain and keeps our fish inside the lake.
Making the lake at least 4 feet deep ‘wherever it is not so naturally’ – remember there were no Mini Diggers in the 1750s – this was dug by hand and moved by carts or hand barrows!
Constructing an island in the middle of the lake – when you are walking around, see if you can count how many islands we have.
The final sum for the work he completed was £2,515 – today this would be worth over £520,000. Capability Brown then started additional works on the Hall’s driveway and landscaping."
SOURCE: (
visit link)
The Trentham Estate as a whole is a Grade II* listed park (list entry 1001168): The full description given by Historic England can be seen at the following link: (
visit link)
(
visit link)
(
visit link)