Ask residents what they like about Harvard, as town-wide surveys often do, and they are likely to say, “its rural character.” That valued quality is no accident. Were it not for a number of residents in the 1960s and ’70s, Harvard might look much different than it does today. Three of those early stewards—Frank Coolidge, Larry Finnegan, and Erhart Muller—and the organization they founded in 1973, the Harvard Conservation Trust, were honored with the 2012 Citizens of Note award at the recent Town Meeting.
The Harvard Conservation Trust’s mission is “to preserve the unique character and natural resources of Harvard.” For the past 40 years, its top priority has been to protect land in Harvard from unwanted development. Since an anonymous $50 contribution got it started, the trust has done just that. It has helped protect more than 750 acres in Harvard. Through generous gifts and strategic purchases, it owns and manages 228 acres and holds conservation easements or restrictions on an additional 412 acres. The trust has given or sold to the town or the US Fish and Wildlife Service another 115 acres.
Early years focus on being nimble
In the early 1960s, most of the small towns in the region still had a strong agriculture presence and a general rural character, though they were beginning to change as farmland gave way to housing developments, shopping centers, and new roads. The Conservation Commission, formed in 1962 to protect water and wildlife resources, began advocating saving Harvard’s farms and forests.
Muller and Finnegan were both members of the Conservation Commission in 1970, when the commission wrote in its annual report to the town, “Harvard at present is the hunting ground for developers who are eagerly pursuing every bit of land on which they can conceivably make a profit. Large landowners, in spite of their best intentions, are finding it increasingly difficult to keep their lands open.”
The same year, planning consultant Charles Eliot’s comprehensive development plan—the town’s first Master Plan —laid out a vision to preserve Harvard’s rural character and beauty with goals and actions that set the course for Harvard development for decades. Chief among his recommendations was preserving open space.
Two large apple orchards had recently been sold for development and the commission determined it had “but a few years” to acquire land for the town. Through donations, town allocations, and federal funds, the commission began adding to Harvard’s conservation land, yet a hole still existed. If property became available, quick action might be needed, but town meeting funding approval was required before the town could buy property.
A more nimble player was needed and, in 1973, the idea for the Harvard Conservation Trust (HCT) as an independent, nongovernmental organization was hatched. Its incorporating trustees were Muller, Finnegan, Coolidge, Edward Squibb, and Albert Anderson.
The trust’s flexibility allowed it, as one of its first acts, to buy several acres of land put up for sale at the end of Pond Road that would otherwise have quickly gone for private development. The trust held the land until it could be sold to the town to become the town beach.
The tradition of giving land to the trust began when Muller and his wife Ruth donated 31 acres of orchard, meadows, and woodlands on Littleton County Road, with a permanent conservation restriction.
Collaboration and perseverance pay off
The trust’s success in preserving land can be attributed to several factors. Certainly its work would not be possible without the forward-thinking people who give generous land and cash donations and work with the trust to set conservations restrictions.
As it did with the Pond Road property, the trust works closely with the Conservation Commission, negotiating an initial purchase and holding it until the commission has the funds and town meeting approval to acquire the land. The trust often further protects town land by holding conservation restrictions on it in perpetuity.
In collaboration with the Boxborough Conservation Trust, founded in 1997 by HCT co-founder Coolidge, the trust helped preserve 100 acres in Boxborough.
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Relationships and perseverance are other critical factors in the trust’s success. The acquisition and preservation of over 30 acres near the town center was an almost 30-year effort. In 1980, trust members began a conversation with Mario Barba, whose land ran from Still River Road to the pond, just opposite the town beach. According to Finnegan, as reported in the Press in 2009, former Selectman Barba was approached several times by potential buyers, one of whom envisioned building a mansion on the pond. Fortunately, Barba’s own vision was to use the property in some way to address the town’s need for senior housing. Barba eventually chose to sell 16 acres to the trust in 1997 for less than he had been offered by others.
The previous year the trust had acquired the adjacent 18-acre Terry-Oyler land. Combining the two parcels, the trust was able to preserve a future town well site and all of the properties’ water frontage, which it sold to the town. It also sold the Terry house and two acres for a private residence to offset the cost of some of its initial purchase. In 2009, the trust finally completed its Barba land acquisitions when it bought the Barba residence and gained a Still River Road access to the interior 15 acres held by HCT Development, a subsidiary of the trust.
The trust initiated another long-term negotiation when the Watt brothers closed their Still River dairy in 1989. By 2001, in collaboration with the Trust for Public Lands, which purchased 112 acres of Watt land, the trust had helped preserve 115 acres of the farm, with four acres reserved for a community septic system.
Continuing stewardship
Today, the trust has more than 360 members. Trustees on its 15-member Board of Trustees may serve two three-year terms and are elected at the HCT annual meeting.
Three years ago HCT hired its first executive director, Marylynn Gentry, a Wayland resident with 15 years of experience in land preservation. Another recent development was opening a physical office, now located at Fruitlands Museum in the museum’s administration building.
As well as acquiring land and assisting landowners with conservation restrictions and donations, the trust manages and maintains a number of properties that provide trails and recreation. HCT’s subcommittees—conservation, stewardship, discovery, and finance—actively encourage use of the conservation land that now abounds in Harvard and promote knowledge of habitats and wildlife and a general appreciation of Harvard’s scenic beauty.
The trust holds many events throughout the year—the New Year’s Day walk, the spring Tree-For-All, the Run for the Hills 5k trail race, as well as numerous walks and talks. It supports the Bromfield Science Fair and other school events, promotes trail activities, and publishes the Harvard Trail Guide with the Conservation Commission. The trust teams up for programs and events with many town organizations, including the Harvard Public Library, Warner Free Lecture, the Historical Society, and Fruitlands.
The Trust’s work is not done, as current Trust President Molly Cutler said in a statement for the Press.
“Over 40 years, the hard work of the many dedicated individuals who have contributed their time and resources to the mission of the Trust has positioned us to actively engage in land conservation projects right now. We have several possible projects under consideration and are always looking for opportunities and partnerships. Of course, our ongoing success will be dependent on community support through memberships, contributions, participation, and volunteerism, so we are very grateful for this recognition from the town,” Cutler said.
One source of the Harvard Conservation Trust’s continued success might be found in the attitude represented by one of its founders. On his 100th birthday, Muller, now 103, was asked about the future. “I’ll keep looking for things I can help do to make this a better place to live,” he said.
