The Rudyard Lake Dam was built by Thomas Peak and John Mansfield and was completed in 1800. It was designed by John Rennie to create a feeder reservoir for the Caldon Canal and the Tent and Mersey Canal.
The dam is 155m long and 11m wide and is formed from an earth bank with a puddle clay core which is faced with stone on the water side.
With the opening in 1849 of North Staffordshire Railway whose line ran alongside the lake the reservoir became a popular leisure destination.