Borderland State Park

Borderland Historic District
Ames Mansion
Nearest city Easton and Sharon, Massachusetts
Coordinates 42°4′1.689″N 71°9′24.231″W / 42.06713583°N 71.15673083°W / 42.06713583; -71.15673083Coordinates: 42°4′1.689″N 71°9′24.231″W / 42.06713583°N 71.15673083°W / 42.06713583; -71.15673083
Built 1910
Architect Ames, Blanche Ames; Ames, Oakes
Architectural style Late Gothic Revival, Georgian, Colonial Revival
NRHP Reference # 97000497[1]
Added to NRHP June 16, 1997

Borderland is a Massachusetts state park located in the towns of Easton and Sharon. The 1,782-acre (721 ha) park is operated by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. An appointed Advisory Council participates in policy decision-making. The area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Borderland Historic District in 1997.

History

In 1906, Oakes Ames, a Harvard botanist (son of Massachusetts governor Oliver Ames and grandson of U.S. Representative Oakes Ames), and his wife Blanche Ames Ames (daughter of Mississippi governor Adelbert Ames, but not related to Oakes Ames), an artist and feminist, purchased land on the border of Sharon and Easton. There they built a mansion which still stands and created a nature preserve with woodland paths and roadways and man-made ponds.

After remaining in the family for sixty-five years, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts acquired the Borderland estate in 1971, two years after the death of Blanche Ames, and opened it as a state park.[2]

Activities and amenities

Sports and popular culture

In recent years, Borderland has served as the home for Oliver Ames High School cross country running, representing the school's home course.[7] It is also utilized by the Old Colony League for its annual cross country meet. The park also hosts the Hockomock League Championship meet and various invitational meets on the 3.1-mile-loop (5.0 km) course. In 1996, the World Masters Flying Disc Championships were held at Borderland.

Scenes from the Martin Scorsese movie Shutter Island were shot at the stone lodge next to Leach Pond in 2008. The park has also seen filming for a commercial, a documentary, and the film Mermaids.[8]

See also

References

  1. Staff (2008-04-15). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. "Borderland State Park". MassParks. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Department of Conservation and Recreation. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  3. "Life at Borderland". MassParks: Borderland State Park. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Department of Conservation and Recreation. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  4. "Ames Mansion". Places Where Women Made History. National Park Service. March 30, 1998. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Plan Your Visit". MassParks: Borderland State Park. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Department of Conservation and Recreation. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  6. "Trail Map" (PDF). MassParks: Borderland State Park. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Department of Conservation and Recreation. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  7. Stewart, Louis (September 19, 2013). "Oliver Ames cross-country team runs past Canton". Wicked Local (Gatehouse Media). Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  8. Downing, Vicki-Ann (May 1, 2008). "Hollywood, Scorsese sets sights on Borderland State Park". Patriot Ledger (Quincy, Mass.). Retrieved September 14, 2014.

Further reading

External links

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