scaling dam reservoir was built between 1952 and 1958 at a cost of £450,000 and is the largest lake in the north york moors. the area that the reservoir is built in was named scaling dam long before the reservoir was built in 1958; mapping and records show a hamlet of scaling dam in the early nineteenth century, and the name is mentioned in camden's 17th century "britannia". the dam was constructed by the tees valley and cleveland water company and despite being in north yorkshire (though its on the border between redcar and cleveland and the borough of scarborough), the dam is owned and regulated by northumbrian water. however, fresh water from the dam was historically supplied to yorkshire water, though this practice stopped in 2012.