Geoff Hutton recalls the origins of a familiar Bradford landmark The mere (boundary) stone, now standing at the bottom of Intake Road, right, was originally situated at the top of Silverhill Road. During the 15th century there was a long-running dispute between the Lords of the Manors of Bradford and Calverley over whose people had the rights to cut turves for fuel on Bradford Moor. This developed into an argument over who actually owned the moor.

The matter eventually went to court and Calverley was declared the winner partly on the grounds, so the story is told, that a dead body having been found on the moor sometime previously, the people of Bradford refused to recover it fearing contagion as the person had probably died of the plague.

The people of Calverley, however, recovered the body and gave it an appropriate burial. As a result of the judgment, in about 1500, Silverhill Road, of ancient standing even then, was set as the boundary between Bradford and Calverley.

At this time, Silverhill Road stretched at least as far as Dick (Dike) Lane at Laister's (Leicester's) Dike, now Laisterdike. In an early document, the dike was described as a "great old ditch on the eastern side of the moor" and formed the eastern boundary of Bradford Moor.

Six mere stones were erected along the length of Silverhill Road, the first being at the top near to what is now Fagley Road and the last at its end near Dick Lane. Five of these stones have disappeared. The sixth was removed from the top of Silverhill Road to its present position at the junction of Intake Road and Fagley Road after the boundary was redrawn in 1882.

It appears previously to have been set deeper into the ground. A date, much defaced, which appears to be 1507, is carved on the side of the stone facing the shops. The initials carved beneath the date are, I think, graffiti, as they follow no particular pattern. In view of its antiquity, I believe that this stone deserves to at least be commemorated by a blue plaque on the adjacent building and should probably be scheduled as an ancient monument.