Mattapoisett Land Trust’s 51 Years
Celebrating 51 Years of Conservation, Education, and Collaboration
2026 Annual Meeting Materials CLICK HERE
MATTAPOISETT LAND TRUST: EXPLORE
Step into the world of Mattapoisett Land Trust and explore our preserves through the videos below. We’re honored to have a very special narrator for this new series in honor of our 50th anniversary…take a look to find out who!
Explore: Dunseith Gardens
Explore: Betseys Meadow
Explore: Old Aucoot District
Explore: Dexter Mill Park
Explore: Brandt Island Cove
JOIN TODAY
We need all of your support to make our next 50 years as great as the first. Become a member today!
Membership dues are the primary source that Mattapoisett Land Trust operates on from year to year. Your dues allow us to maintain our trails and parks, to support education opportunities, to provide free public programs for the community, and keep important spaces free from overdevelopment.
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It’s nearly impossible to summarize all that has happened in the first 50 years of work by Mattapoisett Land Trust – but we will try! Here are some hallmark moments that helped shape what our organization has become today:
1974: Founding of Mattapoisett Land Trust by original board members, David W. Hewitt, George B. Mock, Bradford A. Hathaway, Donald J. Fleming, Norma E. Hewitt, Priscilla A. Hathaway, Violet Jones, Frances Pernas, Larry Seidl, Lorraine Seidl, and Isabella Watts.
1974: In October, with the land donation by Joan M. Woodcock, the Woodcock Preserve becomes the first 20 acres protected by the land trust.
1975: Ruth B. Munro donated the Munro Preserve in December, saving a spectacular viewscape of Mattapoisett Harbor from the posibility of being developed.
1988: As willed by Henry Dunseith, the trust received the Dunseith Gardens property, turning what was a gift shop into a public park and preserving the 40-foot seahorse sculpture known as ‘Salty the Seahorse.’
1993: In October, Ruth Martocci donated nearly 100 acres of land, creating the basis of what exists as the Old Aucoot District today. This is the single largest gift of land the land trust has ever received.
1996: In the fall, the first Heron Newsletter was created and distributed, beginning the biannual dispatch of land trust news to members.
2004: The land trust’s Education Committee is established in earnest, funded by a generous endowment for environmental education made by Edith and Eliot Shoolman.
2007: In November, 100-acres of coastal forest and saltmarsh were acquired from the Walega and Livingstone families, adding to existing holdings and growing what today is the 165-acre Brandt Island Cove District.
2022: Mattapoisett Land Trust hires their first ever full-time paid staff member.
2024: A milestone year marking the 50th anniversary of Mattapoisett Land Trust!
