The Monahon Easements

As a child, Duffy Monahon visited her Hoffman grandparents' orchard in Peterborough. She said the farm was her true magnetic north, and so home she came as an adult. She and her husband Rick built their home near ruins of a house from a different era that burned down long ago.

The land had been divided among family members and some had been sold off, but getting the family farm back became her dream--and one she worked hard to realize. Over the years she convinced family members to conserve their land by means of conservation easement deed restrictions, and she gathered back 40 acres that got away, land that includes wonderful beaver wetlands, and a stream corridor bordered by balsam woods that are alive with wildlife.

As a result of Duffy's efforts, Four Winds Farm will be passed along to future generations with its agricultural heritage just about intact. Honoring her conservation ethic and work that took many forms beyond land conservation, the Conservation Commission awarded Duffy Monahon its Conservation Award in 2003.

Top photo: View looking down the Class VI road (an extension of 4 Winds Farm Road, Peterborough) that crosses the Monahon property.