Individuals have an almost overwhelming number of options for donating private land. In last Friday’s edition of Greenspace Genealogy, we visited Beardsley Park in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Donated in the late 1892, Beardsley Park was an early example of how a family can continue living on a property even after it has been donated to the public.
Ongoing support is an important factor in protecting donating land. Financial support is always critical. Greenspace requires maintenance, especially if there is trail maintenance and vehicle access required. There is the cost of controlled burns, vehicular access as basic as a trailhead parking lot, and signage expense.
Beardsley, like many donors, hired a professional to restore his family’s land to its natural state after it had been farmed. It is naïve to believe a natural area will simply be natural. There are invasives ranging from non-native plants to outdoor enthusiasts on four-wheelers, all of which can damage the greenspace.
Beardsley’s gift involved a commitment by the City of Bridgeport to supply a specific amount of financial support to maintain the park. There never seems to be enough funding for any greenspace.
Successful projects almost always rely on volunteer supporters who are willing to collect native plant seed, conduct informational hikes, work on the site newsletter, and raise money to keep the site in pristine condition.
Over the years, volunteers traced the Beardsley family’s connection to that land and how they and the property fit into the history of the United States from the original Pequannock tribes who lived in the area, through the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, all the way to Beardsley Park today. The Walker Hill part of the park represents another family connection.
Land doesn’t just happen. It evolves over time.
Land ownership doesn’t just happen. There are property ownership laws, historic migrations, and family histories connected to every square millimeter of land in this country.
Everyone has family. We all live through historic times. Some families have land. When they donate that land, it carries with it the history of a family as well as the history of our country.
That is Greenspace Genealogy.
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