Trustees of Reservations

The Campaign to Save Moraine Farm: Revitalizing and Unifying an Olmsted Masterpiece

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Nestled on 175 acres along Wenham Lake in Beverly is Moraine Farm, a Frederick Law Olmsted masterpiece landscape designed in 1880. Moraine Farm is, “the finest existing example of Olmsted’s approach to planning a country estate,” according to pre-eminent Olmsted scholar Charles E. Beveridge.

In the past 150 years, the estate has been fractured into parcels owned by different families, a private school, Project Adventure, and The Trustees. Remarkably, Olmsted’s design has remained largely unchanged over that time, making it a rare gem among the estates created by the father of American landscape architecture. According to Beveridge:

“Moraine Farm was a forerunner for that greatest of Olmsted’s ventures in the designing of private estates and retains more of his spirit than any other residential design still in existence today.”

The Trustees owns four small disparate parcels on the property, and today we have the opportunity to acquire the key central plot of land that includes scenic Wenham Lake access, the main estate house, tea garden, terrace, and areas most intensely designed by Olmsted.

Acquiring this 66-acre parcel is the culmination of a decades-long effort by The Trustees to reunite and restore this historic property and open it to public access for the first time.

Providing people with Moraine’s sweeping views, winding trails, and lush Olmsted landscape lies at the heart of our mission to create publicly accessible open space in iconic places.

For the project details and purpose statement, and to learn how to contribute to this project (it’s Olmsted 200, remember!), visit www.thetrustees.org

Sunday, August 22, 10:00 am – 12:00 noon – Garden Tour and Tea Making

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Join Clinical Herbalist Liane Moccia and Stevens-Coolidge House & Gardens on August 22 at 10 am for a stroll through the gardens and tea-making workshop to unlock the powerful herbs in your home and garden and support optimal health and well-being. Stevens-Coolidge House & Gardens is located at 153 Chickering Road in North Andover.

Liane is an herbalist who helps people find natural solutions to their chronic health problems. She specializes in stress, energy, sleep, fertility and pre-pregnancy planning.

Space is limited; pre-registration is required. Register HERE

For more information please contact kbibeau@thetrustees.org

Refund policy: Refunds must be requested no less that 7 days prior to event date to be honored.

Trustees member: $15 Nonmember: $25

Wednesday, June 2, 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm – Trellising 101 Workshop, Online

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During this free online Boston Community Gardens workshop on June 2 from 5 – 6:30, we will review a variety of trellising techniques for tomatoes, peas, beans, cucumbers, and squash. We will discuss recommended materials and have a live demonstration how to construct them yourself! There will be time for questions at the end. Sponsored by the Trustees of Reservations, please sign up at https://thetrustees.org/event/61950/ If you’re able, consider supporting our gardens through the optional program fee.

Through Sunday, September 12 – Sonya Clark: Monumental Cloth, The Flag We Should Know

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Through large-scale textile pieces, interactive experiences, and performance, this exhibition, on view at the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln through September 12, proposes a shift in the national discussion around race and remembrance. The Confederate Flag of Truce is a simple dishcloth employed as the South’s flag of surrender at the end of the Civil War in 1865. Yet, as Clark shows, propaganda continues to make the more familiar Confederate Battle Flag into the enduring symbol of this history. The exhibition asks: what was surrendered and who had the privilege of surrendering? Did the truce hold? Clark’s works explore the color, texture, and ideology of the Truce Flag, offering avenues for reevaluating foundational American narratives of truce and surrender.

DeCordova is pleased to present two concurrent exhibitions and a full slate of public programs relating to the art of Sonya Clark. A multidisciplinary textile artist and Professor at Amherst College, Clark’s work offers a profound encounter with race and the enduring effects of slavery in the United States. Click here to read about the companion exhibition, Sonya Clark: Heavenly Bound.

Sonya Clark: Monumental Cloth, The Flag We Should Know is organized by the Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia. DeCordova’s presentation is coordinated by Sam Adams, Curatorial Fellow.

The exhibition is supported by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Amherst College, Agnes Gund, the National Endowment for the Arts, Goya Contemporary Gallery & Goya-Girl Press, Rotasa Fund, the John Meyerhoff & Lenel Srochi-Meyerhoff Fund at the Baltimore Community Foundation, and Judith S. Weisman.

Additional support for deCordova’s presentation comes from the Coby Foundation, Ltd., the Lenore G. Tawney Foundation, the Nathaniel Saltonstall Arts Fund, and the Roy A. Hunt Foundation. The exhibition is aligned with the Feminist Art Coalition. For complete information visit www.thetrustees.org.

Credit: Carlos Avedaño

Saturday, March 20 – Tuesday, March 23 – Gardener’s Gathering, Online

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Kick off the gardening season with the Trustees’ annual Gardeners’ Gathering. The Gathering is free and open to all. This year’s virtual event will be spread out over several days and feature:

  • Workshops on gardening and urban homesteading skills for beginning and advanced gardeners
  • Interactive panel discussions on the role of gardens in community resilience and mutual aid
  • Keynote address and presentation of the Community Garden Awards.

Program details will be linked here when available. Register and you’ll receive the program and Zoom links when available. If you’re able, please consider supporting this free event with an optional program fee when you register.

Friday, October 23, 5:00 pm – Saturday, October 24, 9:00 am – Camping on the Grand Allee

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Camp on the Grand Allee, the central landscape feature at Castle Hill on the Crane Estate in Ipswich, a National Historic Landmark, for a once-in-a-lifetime experience! Enjoy s’mores-making around a campfire at base camp (a/k/a the Casino Complex), a night sleeping under the stars, and waking to magnificent estate and ocean views.

Bathroom facilities at the Casino Complex will be available. Space is limited to 8 families. Participants must provide their own tent, bedrolls, and cold supper. Cooking on-site is not permitted. An overnight manager will greet guests, prepare a self-contained campfire and s’mores kits for each group, serve morning coffee, and sanitize restrooms between scheduled family visits.

Pre-registration is required. Trustees members $88 per family, nonmembers $118. Register at https://thetrustees.org/event/57353/

Saturday, August 22, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Sunflower Centerpiece Tutorial

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From stem to vase, learn the skills to assemble a summer-inspired centerpiece fresh from our garden with a seasonal favorite, sunflowers. Whether these sunflowers are from your garden or from your local market, learn how to create a beautiful centerpiece that will be the essence of fresh summer blooms to feel like you have brought the garden inside your home. During this August 22 workshop at Stevens Coolidge Place in North Andover from 1 – 3, participants will learn step-by-step instructions by a Trustees staff member to learn how to assemble their very own Sunflower Centerpiece to reflect the summer season.

In this workshop, participants will learn:

  • Step-by-step centerpiece construction techniques
  • Choosing the correct floral supplies and vessels
  • Understanding colors and fundamental ingredients
  • Understanding basic floral design fundamentals

Space is limted; Pre-registration required. $42 for Trustees’ members, $50 for nonmembers.

Register at http://www.thetrustees.org/things-to-do/northeast/event-54064.html For questions, please contact Julie Olivere (978) 607-1135 or at jolivere@thetrustees.org

Saturday & Sunday, August 15 & 16, 9:30 am – 4:30 pm – Landscape Tour: The Historic Gardens of Castle Hill

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Come explore the gardens and curated landscape of Castle Hill in Ipswich on August 15 and 16. Tours leave every hour on the half hour, last tour at 3:30 pm. This socially distanced outdoor tour of the grounds walks you through the history of the property, the thought behind the gardens and the Grand Allee, and how the Crane family interacted with it all.

Pricing is per family group – no more than 4 people per family. Masks required.

Tours are booked to coincide with a timed parking pass for Castle Hill, which is included in the cost. Your ticket for this tour includes up to 3 hours at Castle Hill (including your tour). Please plan to arrive at the Great House at the top of the hill at least 10 minutes early. Trustees Member carload $40, nonmembers $50. Register at http://www.thetrustees.org/things-to-do/northeast/event-56855.html

Thursdays, beginning June 25, 3:00 pm – 3:30 pm – Afternoon Garden Live Stream

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Looking for a relaxing afternoon but can’t get to the Stevens-Coolidge Place gardens in person? Tune into Facebook Live every Thursday at 3pm to enjoy a live stream of our gardens. Each week we’ll setup a camera in new location to spot chirping birds, nibbling bunnies and of course flowers! 

This program is free of charge, but if you are in a position to do so, donations can be submitted using the link below to support The Stevens-Coolidge Place. Thank you from The Trustees:
thetrustees.org/joinus