Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park

 Across the road from the Billings Farm Museum is the Marsh-Billings-Rockfeller National Historical Park, named after three men that owned this land in succession and were great contributors to the history of American conservation.

Nestled among the rolling hills and pastures of eastern-central Vermont, the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park is the only national park to tell the story of conservation history and the evolving nature of land stewardship in America. The boyhood home of George Perkins Marsh, one of America's first conservationists, and later the home of Frederick Billings, the property was given to the American people by its most recent owners, Laurance S. and Mary F. Rockefeller. The park was created by an Act of Congress and signed into law by President George Bush on August 26, 1992.
--from Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP site

I'm sure the site currently looks much different than it did when we visited in the summer of 2018.  This screenshot shows the current look of the park's website.

After visiting the shared visitor center on the grounds of the Billings Farm we walked across the road to visit the National Park.  Though originally one property they're not split between the sites, which nevertheless appear to have a very close working relationship.

We strolled towards the National Park's visitor center in the old carriage barn.

Part of the path was through the trees.

Stewardship was definitely an important principle of the individuals the park was named after and a key component of the exhibits.  It is most definitely also a biblical concept as in Genesis God told man to have dominion over the earth, which doesn't just mean to exploit it but to care for it.

I hadn't heard about all of the people who had owned the property, but the last one was familiar.  I'd heard of Laurance Rockefeller when we'd visited Grand Tetons National Park back in 2012 and drove down to the southernmost section of the park and saw the Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve.

I enjoyed learning more about Marsh even than we'd just learned across the road at the farm.

We're so accustomed to seeing farms all over the landscape that we don't always think about the environmental cost was when they were created.  Looking back on it now this reminds me of what Charles C. Mann talks about in 1491--of how much the landscape of North America had likely been managed for many years by the inhabitants.  I would agree that farms are vital to feeding people, but we should be careful when we alter the land and we should be good stewards of the land and resources placed under our care.

This model demonstrates how much of the land was deforested (left in 1869) and how much it had recovered after careful tending (right in 1914).

Here is a clearer view of the sheep pastures and deforestation visible by 1869 when the land was sold to Billings.

By 1914 the hill had been reforested and the farm was thriving.

Frederick Billings, who gave his name to the current farm across the road, was a conservationist who bought the property in order to put ideas into action.

Mary French, the granddaughter of Frederick Billings, married Laurance Rockefeller and brought him into the history of the farm.  Of course the Rockefeller's are quite connected with preservation and the National Park Service being involved in Colonial Williamsburg, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Grand Tetons National Park, and more.

We didn't use one, but the park offers adventure packs that you can check out when you explore the trails.

We actually didn't get to walk around much of the grounds.  I think we declined a house tour due to the kids, but we did still see the outside of the mansion.  The trails were sadly too long to explore this trip.

It looks to be an impressive structure and I'd love to tour it someday.

After we saw the house we headed back over to the Billings Farm where we got to see a number of animals.  Read about that experience next time when we go back to summer-time Vermont.  All of the pictures I took of the park can be seen in this album.

~Matt