Dr. William Seward Webb and Eliza Osgood Vanderbilt Webb didn't just want a farm; they wanted a curated masterpiece. In 1886, they used money inherited from railroad magnate William Henry Vanderbilt to buy up a large number of mostly agricultural properties on the shores of Lake Champlain and turn them into an ornamental farm. The estate was designed as a model agricultural estate during the Gilded Age.
To realize this vision, they hired landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted and architect Robert Henderson Robertson to design the grounds and buildings. The Webbs were so committed to the estate that they petitioned to have certain public roads and lanes closed to fulfill their vision. The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and designated a National Historic Landmark District in 2001.
Today, the site is a nonprofit education center for sustainability and a working farm. It currently houses a herd of 125 purebred, registered Brown Swiss cows. These grass-based cows produce milk that is made into farmhouse cheddar cheese. The farm serves as an educational resource by practicing rural land use that is environmentally, economically, and culturally sustainable.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Kyle McLonely
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