Site-Specific Knowledge

Site Land Use

Muddy Pond was formerly a Catholic girls’ summer camp, called Camp Mishannock or

Morningstar, owned and operated by the Sisters of Divine Providence.76 Upon consultation with

Susan Aprill, an archivist from the Kingston Public Library, it appears that around May 1962,

this camp was part of the Gurnett estate. The Plymouth Registry of Deeds shows that the Sisters

of Divine Providence bought around 600 acres called the "Clearing Farm" from Mary E. Gurnett

(1946-10-01, Book 1929, Pages 168-169). Prior to 1948 and this ownership by the Sisters, the

site was reportedly a dairy farm. In fact, during our in-person visit to Muddy Pond, we came

across a root cellar that could have been used to store dairy products. Additionally, the Jones

River Village Historical Society (JRVHS) cites that during the 1700s, the area was once used as

a sheep pasture.77

As we walked through the trails on the Muddy Pond site, Leslie provided further insight that

Indigenous ancestors most likely lived on the site in villages. She explained that the trails we

walked were naturally made hundreds of years ago. Furthermore, the NLC website states that the

90 mile long river trip known as the Wampanoag Canoe Passage was used by Wampanoag

people for thousands of years.78 Site-specific land use issues to note include contention over

fishing access in Muddy Pond and the erosion of the Pond banks due to use. Importantly, the

76 Rapid Ecological Assessment for Muddy Pond – Camp Tract. Kingston, Massachusetts. By Tim Simmons of Simmons Stewardship Ecology. September 2020. 77 2003 - an abstract of minutes of the Jones River Village Historical Society (JRVHS) 78 http://www.nativelandconservancy.org/projects.html

surrounding area of Kingston is expanding rapidly at a growth rate of almost 10% from 2010 to

2019.79

Site Ecology

The Muddy Pond conservation area is part of the Atlantic Coastal Pine Barrens Ecoregion, a

globally imperiled and rare ecosystem. It is a coastal plain pond shore habitat, which is a priority

habitat for rare species in accordance with the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act. The

Muddy Pond area is predominately kettle and kame topography, meaning it was formed

primarily through glacial recession. There are four types of wetlands on the site and there is

presence of vernal pools, which are seasonal and therefore temporary wetlands. The site is 60%

forested with oak (northern red, black, scarlet, and white oak), red maple, white pine, and pitch

pine. Non-native trees include Norway Spruce and Japanese Larch. There are also 2.5 acres of

mixed cultural and natural grasslands which are changing to ferns and milkweed. The site

includes animal species such as the New England Bluet and the Eastern Box turtle, as well as

several notable bat species. The Rapid Ecological Assessment found the site to be in

exceptionally good condition in its ratio of native to non-native species, especially when

compared with surrounding site conditions.

Tim Simmons expressed to us that the site is of particular importance due to its convergence of

geology, hydrology, and expressive flora. Most of the similar habitats present in Massachusetts

are under severe stress due to over withdrawal of groundwater, overdevelopment, declining

water quality, and invasive aquatic plants. Now there are just a handful of intact lands like this

79 Rapid Ecological Assessment for Muddy Pond – Camp Tract. Kingston, Massachusetts. By Tim Simmons of Simmons Stewardship Ecology. September 2020.

one that are under ownership of land trusts. Unfortunately, Tim noted that if one visits the other

ones, one sees that “people love them to death” through trampling and overuse. Jon Leibowitz,

Executive Director of the Northeast Wilderness Trust (NEWT) described how the NEWT-

managed surrounding Muddy Pond Wilderness Preserve experiences heavy human use, primarily

because of ATVs, mountain bikers, and hikers. NEWT monitors this use and discourages it

because of its negative ecological impact. Although the 32-acre Muddy Pond site has also

experienced ATV and foot traffic from locals, it is still relatively preserved.

Site Invasive Species

Below is a list of invasive tree, shrub, and plant species. A review of invasive species literature

(see: Literature Review), conversations with Leslie and Chuckie, maps of the site, and the site

visit formed these interim observations about the site’s present and future species management.

● Japanese knotweed: (See: Literature Review, Invasive Species Management).

● Black locust: Multiple Black Locust groves are present on the site and are slated for

removal. (See: Literature Review, Invasive Species Management).

● Norway spruce: Two groves of Norway spruce are present on the site. Preliminary

findings indicate that some of these, along with a white oak, make up a root cellar present

on the site (see: History). These groves are projected for removal to free resources for

nearby herbaceous plants and native tree stands; however, teaching team discussions of

such removal have made reference to possible bird species which, according to a recent

study (see: Literature Review), rely on Norway spruce stands as replacements for

declining Eastern hemlock. Leslie and Chuckie have discussed the possibility of

introducing white cedar to replace the removed Norway spruce. (See: Literature Review,

Invasive Species Management).

● Oriental bittersweet

● Autumn olive

● Multifloral rose

● Japanese barberry

● Gray willow

● Yellow iris

In addition, the following native species were recorded during the site visit and through

conversations with Leslie and Chuckie.

● White oak

● White cedar

● Eastern Turtle Species, including endangered Northern Red-Bellied Cooter