[1][2] The waters of the lake are leased by the Lowther Estate to the National Trust.

[3] This gift has particular significance to the National Trust, as the organisation was founded in response to the sale of the same island to a private bidder in 1893.

Canon Hardwicke Rawnsley felt that such a location should instead be in public ownership, and soon afterwards started the National Trust with Octavia Hill and Robert Hunter.

[ement], but the weight of the evidence points to OE/ON 'gres' 'grass', with the modern form influenced by Standard English....

The medial '-s(s)e-' may, as suggested by Eilert Ekwall in DEPN,[5] point to ON 'gres-saer' 'grass-lake' as the original name.