Editing Askham Bog (section)

===Peat cutting===
From the early [[Roman period]] until the mid-18th century, Askham Bog and its environsy appeared to have been intensely exploited for peat as fuel.<ref name = "FitterSmith"/> The earliest evidence of nearby peat cutting from the Roman period was discovered in a Roman well in York in the form of lumps of sphagnum peat.<ref>Hall A., Hood J.&nbsp;R.&nbsp;S., Kenworthy H., Williams D. 1979. Biological evidence from Roman deposits at Skledergate.  ''The Archaeology of York'' '''14''' 3.</ref>

In the [[Middle Ages]], peat was cut by the villagers of [[Dringhouses]] and [[Acomb, North Yorkshire|Acomb]], as evidenced by the written bylaws of the Manor of Drighouses and Acomb Court Rolls, which restricted peat cutting by tenants. The severe penalties imposed by these legal restrictions reflect the attempt by the local authorities back then to counteract the damaging intensity of peat extraction at Askham Bog.<ref name = "FitterSmith"/> Intensive peat cutting had probably caused substantial topographical changes on the bog since its original geographic formation. In turn, a lowering of the acid peat layer through extraction would have allowed  base-rich groundwater to inundate the centre, transforming it into an open fen.<ref name = "FitterSmith"/> Further physical evidence exists in the form of dykes surrounding the current main peat domes. These dykes would have been dug to aid removal of peat by boat.<ref name = "Fitter1980"/>

The whole bog became vegetated with woody shrubs and trees after cessation of peat cutting around the 1750s.<ref name = "FitterSmith"/> It was then extensively used as game covert from the late 19th century until the Second World War, which probably explains the extensive felling of Far Wood during this time. The bog was acquired in 1946 by Sir Francis Terry and Joseph Rowntree, who subsequently both of whom gifted it to Yorkshire Naturalists' Trust (now known as [[Yorkshire Wildlife Trust]]) in 1946. It is Yorkshire Wildlife Trust's oldest nature reserve.<ref name = "Oxford">Oxford G.&nbsp;S., Scott A.&nbsp;G. 2003. The spider fauna of Askham Bog, York, and the assessment of conservation value. ''Naturalist'' '''128''': 157–170.</ref>