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Stone Walls of
Westport –
Updated May 28, 2008
Once a farmer’s nuisance, mostly
igneous fieldstones left over from the last ice age’s receding glaciers are now
being used to produce some of the finest dry stone walls in New England. In the
early years, Westport farmers picked stones from their farm lands and created
long piles of rubble into crude field barriers, fences, and farm animal
enclosures. This practice has evolved over time into more formal property
boundaries, and has become a signature of rural Westport.
The art
of incorporating a fieldstone wall into a property’s landscaping design is now
popularly known as “hardscapes”. Early English settlers arriving in
Massachusetts in the 1600’s brought their homeland’s wall building techniques
with them. Arguably, the best talent in dry fieldstone wall building comes from
Great Britain. Later, wealthy American farmers and industrialists rebuilt these
early piles of rubble into more handsome structures, becoming monuments in
their own right. In the present day, the art of wall building has changed into
a highly evolved discipline, with skilled craftsmen producing free-standing
works of art. Stone
Wall Information
Encountering a 300 year-old abandoned fieldstone wall enveloped by secondary
forest can evoke nostalgia of times gone by. Our early cultural heritage is on
display for all those to see. This photo essay is an attempt to illustrate the
beauty of today’s “hardscapes”, as well as show some of the early examples of
18th and 19th century fieldstone walls still visible in modern Westport.
Come and view photos
of these magnificent reminders of New England’s agricultural past.
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Read about 1899 Westport to understand its origins.
Westport circa 1900 (left) is literally littered with stone walls that
define fields and boundaries, and provide a handy spot to dump unwanted field
stones. The Wolf Pit School circa 1833 can be seen in the lower left of the
photo. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Today, farming
remains the chief use of Westport open land, with cow corn, hay, specialty
produce, and vineyards being the crops of choice. In 2007, a young Westport man
(see story below) ventured into farming for the first time by purchasing and
farming a 32 acre piece of APR land. He rock picks his fields just like early
Westporters, except his backhoe makes the job a little easier. Interestingly,
the white granite rocks and small boulders gathered from his field have more
value in building “hardscape” stone walls and clambake fires than merely being
thrown into a rubble pile!
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Resurrection of Westport
Farming? Read about it >
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The Trustees of Reservations and the Westport Land Conservation Trust have announced the sale of a
prime agricultural parcel to a local young man who will go from his high
school graduation straight onto a tractor. Andrew
Orr, a senior at Westport High School, has always dreamed of making farming a
career. Now, with his purchase of 13 acres of the Wood farm parcel at the
corner of Adamsville and Sodom Roads, his dreams will soon become a reality. For the
past three years, Mr. Orr has been grooming his career working on the Wood
farm and helping to run its popular farmstand. Jim Wood, whose family has
farmed the land since 1900, is retiring. Mr. Wood will, however, continue to
provide Mr. Orr with guidance, helping him pour over seed catalogues and plan
for the upcoming growing season. |
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From early subsistence crop growing, Westport moved into
commercial potato farming, producing the Macomber Turnip unique to Westport.
Our town gradually developed into one of the largest dairy communities in New
England. In 1873 Westport had more sheep (518) than any other town in the
county. Field use with the building of boundary walls and animal enclosures
gradually took over most of the available land in Westport. The building of early dry stone walls
probably followed European construction techniques. Today’s stone walls have evolved into decorative “hardscapes”, certainly
unique to New England. These enduring structures have been renovated,
restored, and newly built, and continue to be the fence of choice in Westport.
One thing is sure; they still make great fences, and strong fences make good
neighbors! |
One
will find that some of our early 20th century farms have been abandoned
and overgrown, and some have been developed into sprawling residential
neighborhoods. However, with the help of community preservation funds,
agricultural preservation restrictions, and land trust protection, some of
Westport’s early character is being preserved - from Old Bedford Road, to Old
Pine Hill Road, to picturesque Old Harbor Road. Part of our rural character is
the dry stone walls that interlace our entire community. The preservation of
our open spaces is germane to the perpetuation of these fieldstone and granite
walls, which seem to pepper every field. This photo essay captures the essence
of these rock monuments to an earlier time.
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Stone Wall Building Volunteer Day at the Westport Town
Farm. Over 20
volunteers learned the art and science of restoring stone walls, courtesy of
local stone wall builder Chris Tracey.
Chris was everywhere, giving instruction with hands-on tutorials, overseeing,
educating, and giving much of himself to preserve the old rock relics we call
stone walls. The Trustees found many volunteers to help preserve these magnificent
reminders of New England’s agricultural past. Saturday, April 26, 2008 Read the full
story now. View the photo album
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Click on each of the logos below to learn more
about our community’s preservation efforts.
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Westport Land Conservation Trust
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The Trustees of Reservations
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Westport Community
Preservation Committee
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Dartmouth Natural Resource Trust
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Mass Environmental Trust
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Mass Community
Preservation Act
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Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program (APR)
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Copyright © 2004-2008 Community
Events of Westport. All
rights reserved. Photographs and text are protected by Federal Copyright.
Reproduction of any kind without written permission is strictly prohibited.