Stories of the Stone Farm

by Linda Morse

Part One - Our story begins

Part Two - It's not a big house

Part Three - Tragedy befalls the Stones

Part Four - The rhythm of life on the Stone Farm

Part Five - "A farmer?"

Part Six - “I’m afraid the last crop this farm will grow will be houses.”

Friends of the Stone Farm Committee

The committee wishes to thank EVERYONE who helped to make the dream of the preservation of the Stone Farm a reality. Miracles do happen!

Cindy Bagley

Addison "Bink" Chase

Brigette & Nick Holmes

Beth McGuinn

Linda Morse

Mike & Patty Shearin

Brett St. Clair

Margaret Watkins

The Stone Farm

Located at Stone and Guinea roads, the last working farm in Dunbarton was been continuously owned and operated by the Stone family since 1809.

The campaign to protect this land was spearheaded by Friends of the Stone Farm, which included the Dunbarton Conservation Commission, Dunbarton Congregational Church and Five Rivers Conservation Trust.  

Acquiring a conservation easement on the 200+ acres of the farm means that the land will always be available for farming and forestry -- instead of roads and houses. The Five Rivers Conservation Trust will hold the easement and ensure its terms are binding on all future owners.

The Conservation Commission will work with owner Judy Stone to lay out a public trail past some of the more remarkable cellar holes and stone walls that speak to the land’s past use and its place in Dunbarton's history. The farm connects other conservation properties, creating a 625+ acre block of conserved land.

This farm is a lasting reminder of Dunbarton's agricultural heritage. Davis Conservation Foundation, Dunbarton Conservation Fund, Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP), Merrimack Conservation Partnership, NH Charitable Foundation, Russell Farm and Forest Conservation Foundation, and State Conservation Committee Moose Plate Grant Program have already committed funding to support this important conservation project.