Wolfe's Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment
Photo: Wolfe's Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment.
Set amidst 600 acres along the coastal waters of Freeport, Wolfe's Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment hums with life. Both a working farm and educational center, the Center is, "on a mission to create a world where agriculture and food systems support farmer viability, thriving ecosystems, and vibrant communities." Visitors of all ages can learn about regenerative agriculture, aspiring farmers can receive technical assistance, while scientists conduct research to discover the most productive growing techniques with the least amount of disruption to the existing ecosystem. Most recently, the creation of the Casco History Lab has provided a space for deep learning and sharing of place-based knowledge through oral history, historic preservation, and archaeology - highlighting the stories of people who have inhabited this land for millennia.
In the late 1940s Eleanor and Lawrence Smith of Philadelphia purchased the land at Wolfe's Neck as a summer retreat. Always intent on preserving open spaces and historic buildings they grew trees and tried different conservation practices, adding livestock to the mix in the 1950s. The Smiths donated approximately 200 acres to the State (now Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park) in 1969, and the remaining 626 acres went to the University of Southern Maine upon Eleanor's death in 1985. The University used the farm to experiment with agricultural techniques and, crucially, to develop educational programs for children.
Today, visitors to Wolfe's Neck can camp on the quintessential rocky Maine shore, walk wooded coastal trails, connect with food and history, and learn how regenerative farming practices sustain life at the Center for Agriculture & the Environment. "What and how we eat matters," and when people know where their food comes from and how it is both literally and imaginatively rooted in place, we support the health of our bodies, our communities, and the planet.
