A Farm with History
Est. Circa 1850 | Re-Est. 2019
Roberts Harbor Farm was established in 2019, but its roots extend back to the mid-1800s. Around 1850, the land became the property of the Roberts family, for whom the harbor was named. The Roberts worked the land as their own farm and built the large farmhouse that still stands (the “upper” house) as well as a “lower” cottage on the harbor’s edge.
The many farm buildings seen today were largely the work of Franz Herrmann, a longtime summer visitor who bought the Roberts Estate in 1917. Almost as soon as he acquired the property, he set about turning it into an idyllic (yet still working) farm. The “upper” and “lower” houses were extensively remodeled and expanded. A new, larger barn made room for modern equipment, including a “milk room” for dairy production.
Hermann also commissioned other work buildings which can still be seen: a “hot house” for flowers, pump house, chicken coop, hog house, goose house, boat house, observatory, blacksmith shop, and carpenter shop. Everything was surrounded by fields where produce grew, as well as pastures for livestock to graze and an English garden for visitors to wander.
According to Sidney Winslow, an unofficial Vinalhaven historian:
“The sounds of hammer and saw were heard all over the place which now, as viewed from the adjacent cove, took on the appearance of a small village; white buildings with bronze green trimmings.”
After Hermann’s death in 1921, the executors of his estate began to sell off parcels of the property and it slowly ceased to be a working farm. In 1938, Dr. Paluel J. Flagg, a doctor from New York and Noel’s grandfather, bought the majority of the old estate as a summer residence for his large family. Many of the old farm buildings were transformed into summer cottages, year-round residences, and even a chapel.
Despite not maintaining the property as a farm, Dr. Flagg still wanted his children to get “back to the soil,” according to one newspaper interview, and encouraged them to work on improving the family land.
In 1971, the upper portion of the property (the “upper house,” barns, and small outbuildings) were sold to Charlotte Goodhue, a passionate naturalist and horticulturalist, who was interested in restoring much of Hermann’s work.
Now it’s our privilege to nurture the soil and restore the property for the benefit of the island. More than just a carrot, a tomato, or a bouquet—when you support Roberts Harbor Farm, you become part of its special history and help to ensure its future. Thank you.
