Roman Lakes,
a family venue
The Roman Lakes is a wedding and events venue with beautiful woodland walks & lakeside views. We have been family owned and run since 1952.
We are proud of our family’s long connection with our beautiful surroundings and care passionately about our environment, actively engaging in our local community and supporting local produce and suppliers wherever possible.
We host stunning lakeside weddings and events and have a programme of public events
and open days.
Our history
The Roman Lakes and surrounding valley were once central to the great enterprise which was Samuel Oldknow’s Mellor Mill. Built in 1792, Mellor mill was once the largest water mill in Europe and, in 1804, 550 people worked at the mill. The millponds which are now known as the Roman Lakes provided water for the mill, powering a series of large water wheels.
After the destruction of Mellor mill by fire in 1892, the millponds that now form the Roman Lakes were transformed into a late nineteenth century pleasure resort. They took their name from the sixteenth century Roman Bridge which crosses the River Goyt just upstream of the Roman Lakes.
The lakes became incredibly popular from the Edwardian period onwards, with newspaper articles describing hordes of visitors from the surrounding towns gathering at the Roman Lakes to go boating on the lake, play little penny slot machines, visit the tearooms and take part in genteel tea dances by the lake. These early tea dances have proved the inspiration for Friends of Our Valley’s monthly live music events. Although the original dances were open air and could boast a large dance floor and full band, our modern tea dances are a more modest affair and, for the winter months at least, take place undercover within the Roman Lakes Tea Rooms.
Our family is aware of how special the Roman Lakes are and hope to continue to share our stunning surroundings for generations to come.