Financing set for preserving Webster farm
Source: citizen.com, by Staff and Wire Reports
February 24, 2007
The farm of orator and statesman Daniel Webster, slated two years ago for a housing development, will be preserved under a deal announced Thursday.
The Trust for Public Land put together the $2.5 million deal with help from the state and federal governments, private donors and the state's public-private Land and Community Heritage Investment Program.
"Daniel Webster was one of America's greatest 19th century statesmen and preserving his farm is part of telling the American story. That story can now be told forever," said Whitney Hatch, the trust's New England director.
Webster was born in Franklin, though not on the farm, in 1782. He became a congressman, senator, presidential candidate and secretary of state.
The Trust for Public Land and several partners have been working since 2005 to preserve the 141-acre farm on the Merrimack River in Franklin.
"The National Trust's listing of the farm on its '11 Most Endangered Sites' helped focus attention on this irreplaceable treasure and put it on the Trust for Public Land's Radar screen," said Rep. Leigh Webb of Franklin who has been actively involved in its preservation.
For many years the fate of the Webster Farm was uncertain. A preservation effort began in September 2005 when a previous owner proposed a housing development on the farm. The Land and Community Heritage program put up $750,000 and the trust agreed to buy the farm.
The step completed Thursday was the sale of the dozen buildings on the property to a company started by Alex Ray, owner of the Common Man chain of restaurants, the trust said in a written statement. Ray plans to use them for a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, a culinary program and possibly a school.
Ray then responded to a nationwide search for a buyer who would use the buildings consistent with their history, the trust said. The buildings, once an orphanage, had fallen into disrepair.
"We are so pleased with how well Alex Ray's plan for the property mesh with how this property has been used over the last two centuries," said Jennifer Goodman, the executive director of the Preservation Alliance. "He will not only revive the historic structures, but will continue the agricultural, educational, charitable, and renewal activities that have defined this special place for over 200 years."
"No other preservation opportunity in New Hampshire had greater historical, cultural or natural resource value. We're thrilled that it's no longer on the endangered list," said Rachel Rouillard, director of the Land and Community Heritage program.
"The combined efforts of the preservation groups is the culmination of a long process initiated by local citizens — particularly Dan Fife of Franklin," said Rep. Jim Ryan of Franklin who was an incorporating member of the Webster Farm Preservation Association.
Three generations of Fifes have farmed along the Merrimack River on land considered by some to be some of the most productive soil in the state.
"The good work in recognizing our historic sites needs to continue in Franklin and throughout New Hampshire," said Ryan.
