The Mere Club, in Seamer Road, was forced to close its doors due to mounting debts and declining interest.

Secretary Denise White, whose father was a former member, said: "We didn't organise anything special because the interest just wasn't there. It's been dead for the past few weeks. It's sad but there's nothing else we can do."

The club, which was formed in 1937, had a membership of more than 1,300 in its heyday, but that figure had dwindled significantly.

For many years it boasted one of the best club concert rooms in the area.

It seated 250 people, had its own bar and was constantly in demand from organisations who wanted to hire it to host their own prize presentations and similar events.

The club started life as the Waddingtons Works Club and became affiliated to the Working Men's Club and Institute Union (CUI) in 1937.

Waddingtons was a Scarborough firm of piano manufacturers and a section of the club in Seamer Road was part of the old piano factory.

In the 1950s, 60s, 70s the club had more than 1,000 members, attracting hundreds of workers from coach builders Plaxton which had its factory next door, on the site where B&Q and Halfords now stand.

When Plaxtons moved its operations out to Eastfield in the early 1980s the club's membership started to fall and in 1992 committee members put an advert in the Evening News to dispel rumours that the club was about to close.

A year later the club became embroiled in a row about allowing women to become full members of the club when the CUI voted by 1,284 to 781 to carry on banning women from certain areas of the clubs.

Steve and Jo Drydale, of Parkfield Gardens, say they enjoyed many memorable nights at the Mere while representing the Anglers Club.

Mrs Drydale said: "My husband and I have fond memories of many happy times spent at the Mere Club.

"We played against them in the 5s & 3s Club League at dominos for more than 25 years. We looked forward to the nights when we played as we always had great games. They had many fine players in their two teams and their were some great characters among them.

"The presentation night for the league at the end of the season was often held at the Mere Club, as it was a large club and could hold all the teams. The hospitality on those nights was superb. Everyone had a lovely night there."

She added: "The atmosphere in the club was great. We made many friends there and its presence will be sorely missed in the club league."

Stuart Thomas, who now lives in Nottinghamshire, said: "As a toddler in the late-1970s I remember walking around the large snooker tables and eyeing up the large glass bottles of cola on my parents and parents friends' tables shrouded in cigarette smoke.

"There used to be a stage with a full drumkit too. They would let us kids play with it and other instruments.