Rudyard, Staffordshire

The place-name Rudyard is derived from the Old English rude + geard, first recorded in 1002, meaning 'a yard or enclosure where rue is grown'.

[1] The Rudyard Lake was built in 1797 by the engineer John Rennie, for the Trent and Mersey Canal company, to provide water for the Caldon Canal.

The Rudyard Lake Steam Railway operates steam trains along a one and a half mile track along the eastern side of the lake.

The western shore is part of the Staffordshire Way, a long distance footpath.

The lakeside resort developed after the construction of the North Staffordshire Railway in 1845.