Historic Nantucket, April 1980, Vol. 27 No. 4

The Quiet Sentinel on the Hill IN THE WINTER months the Old Mill stands high above the town like a lonely sentinel. There is something prophetic in its stark appearance against the sky line, as if in its representation it is truly on guard, a timetested figure, holding fast to a determination to protect its surrounding terrain. There is a symbol of hope in this representation. When this historic structure came into the possession of the Nantucket Historical Association over eighty years ago, the far-sighted members of that time decided to protect its immediate environment by buying the land across the lane. In view of what is happening today, this purchase of the crest of landscape to the cast has prevented a line of houses that would dominate the view and destroy the opportunity to envision the past.

In like manner, the young organization of the Nantucket Civic League purchased the property to the south and promptly created the Mill Hill Park. This thoughtful act has protected the area further from the certain sweep of building that would have engulfed it today..

Thus, the Old Mill serves as a sentinel guarding the story of the Island's past and a symbol of holdingfast to those principles which enabled the first settlers and their seafaring progeny to persevere. In our modern world we have forgotten some of the lessons taught by the history of those earlier times. The sentinel on the hill symbolizes our historic past but also warns of the dangers of the present. The very durability of the Old Mill reminds us that its long years have been a result of preservation and protection. As a guide for the future it points the way toward the reclamation of those stretches of outlying land so that they may remain as a protection and a setting for the old town and its new suburbs. The Conservation Foundation has created a remarkable record in acquiring sections of this outlying land; the Town should follow the example and acquire property that now is the prize of the developers who would only destroy it.

As a setting for Nantucket Town — a rare historical jewel that becomes more important with time's passage — the outlying land should be preserved. Once the setting is destroyed the jewel will not escape the tarnish.

—Edouard A. Stackpole