The Charles W. Ward Reservation is a

open space reserve An open space reserve (also called open space preserve, open space reservation, and green space) is an area of protected or conserved land or water on which development is indefinitely set aside. The purpose of an open space reserve may include ...

located in

Andover Andover may refer to: Places Australia *Andover, Tasmania Canada * Andover Parish, New Brunswick * Perth-Andover, New Brunswick United Kingdom * Andover, Hampshire, England ** RAF Andover, a former Royal Air Force station United States * Andov ...

and

North Andover, Massachusetts North Andover is an affluent town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the 2020 census the population was 30,915. History Native Americans inhabited what is now northeastern Massachusetts for thousands of years prior to European c ...

, north of

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most p ...

. The reserve, managed by the land conservation non-profit organization

The Trustees of Reservations The Trustees of Reservations is a non-profit land conservation and historic preservation organization dedicated to preserving natural and historical places in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is the oldest land conservation nonprofit org ...

, is notable for its open

drumlin A drumlin, from the Irish word ''droimnín'' ("littlest ridge"), first recorded in 1833, in the classical sense is an elongated hill in the shape of an inverted spoon or half-buried egg formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated ...

hilltops and vistas encompassing Boston and Salem. The Ward Reservation offers of trails and former woods roads available for hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, and cross country skiing; it is also a link in the Bay Circuit Trail system.

Geography and recreation

The Ward Reservation contains hayfields, hilltops, wetlands, creeks, swamps, and woodlands. Colonial era stone walls on the property, when combined, total more than long. Hills on the reservation include Shrub Hill, Boston Hill, and the Holt Hill drumlin, named for the 17th-century settlement of Nicholas Holt, which offers 280 degree views of Boston, Salem, and the Blue Hills. An arrangement of "solstice stones" on the summit mark annual

solstice A solstice is an event that occurs when the Sun appears to reach its most northerly or southerly excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around June 21 and December 21. In many countrie ...

and

equinox A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun crosses the Earth's equator, which is to say, appears directly above the equator, rather than north or south of the equator. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise "due east" and set ...

events. Pine Hole Bog, a rare quaking bog located on the property is accessed via a

boardwalk A boardwalk (alternatively board walk, boarded path, or promenade) is an elevated footpath, walkway, or causeway built with wooden planks that enables pedestrians to cross wet, fragile, or marshy land. They are also in effect a low type of bridge ...

; The Trustees of Reservations provides an interpretive brochure for the bog at trailhead kiosks. A network of trails span the Ward Reservation, most notably the Bay Circuit trail which forms a 200-mile (320 km) arc around metropolitan Boston through suburbs west of the city. The trail passes over Holt Hill. A main reservation trailhead and parking area is located on Prospect Road in Andover. There is also access and parking at Brightview on Turnpike Street in North Andover via Boston Hill.

History

The Ward Reservation's original acreage was donated by Mrs. Charles W. Ward in 1940 in memory of her husband. Additional lands were given by the Ward family and other donors in at least twelve gifts from 1944 to 1999. Other parcels were purchased between 1958 and 1978. Parts of the reservation, including some parcels it surrounds, are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

as the Holt Farm. A fire tower was built at the top of Holt Hill in 1924. The current tower was built in 1970. It is in active use, but is not open to the public. Some time in between 2005-2013, the Johnston family sold their inherited land from Grey Road to earlier reservation land. Mary, Chuck, and Joe all sold their land to the reservation, and generously added to the governmental land for a very cheap price. The land was officially sold, and the Johnston root can still be seen in the houses and family ties in Andover.

Image gallery

File:Ward Reservation P1130890.jpg, Bog Trail File:Ward Reservation P1130894.jpg, Pine Hole Pond File:Ward Reservation P1130896.jpg, Fire tower on Holt Hill File:Ward Reservation P1130898.jpg, Solstice stones on Holt Hill summit

References

External links

Ward Reservation
The Trustees of Reservations
Trail mapPine Hole Bog nature trail brochureBay Circuit Trail Section 3 descriptionBay Circuit Trail Section 3 map
{{coord, 42, 38, 28, N, 71, 6, 21, W, type:landmark, display=title The Trustees of Reservations North Andover, Massachusetts Protected areas of Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Circuit Trail Open space reserves of Massachusetts Protected areas established in 1940 1940 establishments in Massachusetts