atHome with History By Nancy McGartland Photos by Kelly Fletcher
19th-century farmers in Hancock, like the Goodhues and Haywards, would feel at home today here on Middle Road as Tom and Ariane Ice transform its 100 acres into a self-sustainable farm. Now forested, in the 1820-1840 heyday, this land was 80% clear cut for sheep pastures. Since they bought the properties in 2020, the Ices have cleared just 16 acres, but the view from the hilltop in the middle of that clearing makes The Farm at Wolf Pine Hollow resemble the bare hills of the working farms of yore, complete with (just a handful) of Romney sheep. “We have a farming philosophy and agroforestry approach that espouse responsible, organic principles — such as biodiversity, permaculture, and cover cropping,” says Tom on their website. A living bridge to that past, the farm’s remaining wolf pines, the property’s namesake, were once pasture trees, left to provide shade for stock. “True legacies, the only living things which have persisted throughout the radical changes” in New England landscapes “over the past 200 years,” according to Ethan Tapper, a Vermont forester, in The Hinesburg Record. Since the 19th century, as the forests grew back, wolf trees were often cut down as useless timber. Now science knows that wolf trees provide “nesting and denning habitat for birds, rodents, mammals and their predators. Just as livestock once bunched under them for shade, virtually all wildlife seems to use wolf trees in some way,” Tapper continues. They are “critical hubs in the midst of a vast subterranean network,” with underground fungi subsidizing young seedlings, sharing the wolf trees’ resources with them. These “biological legacy trees”
14 Home at
www.athomenewengland.com
encourage vibrant forests into the future. Though sentinels of the past, wolf pines revitalize future growth, just as the Ice couple are renewing 100 acres of old farms through agritourism and agri-entertainment. They follow in the well-worn footsteps of Hancock tourism that started in the 1880s when railroads brought Boston vacationers up for summer retreats. The Ice’s 2020 purchases include five houses and a church. Three of these properties are historically noteworthy: the Hayward House at 53 Middle Road, the Ware House at 109 Bonds Corner Road, and the 1883 Community Church at 18 Main Street in Francestown. “The Community Church of Francestown holds so many memories. So many gatherings, suppers, services, group meetings, and teen projects took place here,” this Old House Dreams advertisement speaks truths about this church. Tom and Ariane want to see such memories continue to be made in its spacious chancel and well-equipped social hall. The Ices decided to lovingly restore this Victorian gem so that it will be renewed for future memorial services, weddings and other group events. They will renovate its hardwood floors back to gleaming beauty and update the commercial kitchen to help process the Farm’s produce into farm stand products. The attractive antique Bradley and Hubbard chandeliers will once again shed their warm glow over many celebrations for years to come. Though the steeple is long gone, there’s still a mysterious space unexplored. Above the chancel, the roof soars high, but this attic space is sealed with no access except two windows in the church’s peaked front. The Ices sent a drone-mounted camera to peek into the peak, but it was too dark. Since the roof must be repaired, Ariana hopes the roofers will pry into this mystery. When the Ices bought the church, they also inherited all the church’s materials. In addition to pews and other furniture, they found reams of religious church supplies, arts and crafts materials, a large drum(!), and even Christmas decorations. In the capacious, fully-equipped kitchen, they found gorgeous antique sets of dishes that they’re looking forward to using to host dinners and tastings in Farm venues. The Ware House, after its complete renovation, will be available as a four-bedroom AirBnb (as will the other four homes on the
