Fell Foot Park
Fell Foot Park is a country park, formerly the grounds of a Victorian house, situated beside Windermere, a lake in Cumbria, England, and in the ownership of the National Trust. It is just north of Newby Bridge on the A592 road in the civil parish of Staveley-in-Cartmel in South Lakeland district.
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Location | Cumbria, England |
Coordinates | 54.2751°N 2.9523°W |
Operated by | National Trust |
The estate was owned by Jeremiah Dixon, mayor of Leeds in 1784,[1] who sold it in 1859 to Colonel G.J.M. Ridehalgh (1835-1892), a director of the North Lonsdale Iron and Steel Company, colonel of the 2nd Westmorland Volunteer Battalion Border Regiment[2] and one of the founder members of the Royal Windermere Yacht Club. The house was demolished in 1907 to build a larger replacement, but the project was abandoned when the then owner died. The estate was given to the National Trust in 1948.[3][4]
The manager's house (originally built as a gas works),[3] several boathouses including one converted to a cafe,[5][6][7] and a workshop and dock[8] are Grade II listed buildings. They were constructed for Col. G.J.M. Ridehalgh.[3] A local sailing and rowing club is located at the park and rowing boat and kayak hire is available during summer months. Other facilities include car parking, toilets, a gift shop and a playground.
Between March and September, Windermere Lake Cruises operate a passenger ferry service from Lakeside station to Fell Foot. At Lakeside, connection can be made to the same company's steamer service to Bowness-on-Windermere and the preserved Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway.[9]
The park's buildings were flooded during the 2015–16 Great Britain and Ireland floods.[10]
A new watersports centre opened at the north end of the park in 2018.[11] The park holds regular events, including a parkrun event every Saturday[12] and the All England Open Stone Skimming Championships every August.[13]
References
- "Lord Mayors & Aldermen of Leeds since 1626" (PDF). Leeds City Council. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- "George John Miller Ridehalgh". Grace's Guide to British Industrial History. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- Historic England. "Manager's House, Fell Foot Park (1225513)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- "Fell Foot Park". About Britain. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- Historic England. "Southern boathouse at Fell Foot Park (1225561)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- Historic England. "Northern boathouse at Fell Foot Park (1266317)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- Historic England. "Cafetria, Information centre and adjoining boathouse at Fell Foot Park (1225511)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- Historic England. "Workshop and adjoining dock at Fell Foot Park (1225512)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- "Fell Foot Ferry". Windermere Lake Cruises. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
- "Flooding at Fell Foot". National Trust. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
- "Walney's world sailing champion Steve Goacher opens Fell Foot Active Base". The Mail. 25 June 2018. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
- "Fell Foot parkrun, Newby Bridge". Retrieved 29 September 2019.
- "Stone-skimming champion beats own record on Windermere". BBC News. 18 August 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
Further reading
- Hubbard, Alan (1 May 2015). Planning Policy Statement: Fell Foot Project, Fell Foot, Windermere: Development of the Historic Fell Foot Estate (PDF). National Trust. Note especially Appendix 1, Pages 36–38: "Fell Foot Park, Statement of Significance" for history of the estate.
External links
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- Fell Foot Park information at the National Trust
- Illustrated guide to Fell Foot Park
- "Fell Foot". Old Cumbria Gazetteer. Includes links to many maps showing Fell Foot and a picture of the house