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| It started around Christmas 1998 with an alert on the Internet that a 250-year old Tefft farm in South Kingstown, R.I., was in danger of being destroyed by construction. Four years later, the Tefft homestead property is safely in the hands of preservationists who continue to work to see that the cemeteries, stone walls, foundations and other historic and prehistoric features on the land remain undisturbed and available for others to study and appreciate. Here's a brief look at the progress that's been made: |
| Four years of progress to save and preserve the Tefft Homestead |
| Updated Jan. 28, 2002 |
| Visit these TFA pages for background and news on the purchase and preservation of the Tefft Homestead property: News FAQs about the Tefft Homestead Purchase Preserving the Tefft Homestead TFA Newsletter Vol. 2, No. 3 July/Aug. 2001 |
| March 7, 2000 |
| Purchase option for remaining 28-acres of Tefft Homestead property signed. Sale price is $260,000. The purchase agreement is made by the South Kingstown Land Trust (SKLT), a nonprofit organization in South Kingstown, R.I., that seeks to preserve open space. |
| March 2000 |
| SKLT begins a fundraising campaign to complete the purchase. The campaign involves solicitation of public and private donations. First to fund the project is Rhode Island's Department of Environmental Management, which commits $50,000 to the project. By April 4, South Kingstown's Biscuit City Association, a homeowner's group living near the homestead property, joins in the campaign. By May 22, the Town of South Kingstown agrees to spend up to $80,000 to match funds raised by private donors. |
| Nov. 28, 2000 |
| SKLT completes the purchase, still shy of the goal. However, the Nature Conservancy agrees to loan SKLT $25,000 to close the deal. This covers the purchase price plus an additional $9,000 spent on acquisition costs. (The loan is later forgiven and considered a grant by the Nature Conservancy.) |
| Jan. - Aug. 2001 |
| The 28-acre Tefft Homestead is officially named the Tefft Historical Park. A management committee is formed to work out details of a long-term management plan. The plan is adopted in August. |
| Aug. - Spring 2002 |
| Work begins to apply for National Register of Historic Places status for the Tefft Historical Park. Grant and private funding is being sought for maintenance and improvements at the park consistent with the approved management plan. These include addressing such problems as soil erosion (drainage), restoration of natural features such as meadow grass, safety such as covering an open water well, and access such as pathways. |
| What's next? There's work to be done! |
| Undetermined |
| Undetermined |
| Capping a historic stone-lined water well--requires designing a cover, pricing it out, getting archaeological/historical approval, etc. |
| Meadow Grass Project--replanting meadow grass in and around historic Cemetery 100 to stablize the soil |
| We have the land. We have a plan. Now funding and volunteers are needed to complete the work left to be done to protect and develop the park so visitors can appreciate its natural and historic features. The SKLT, TFA and others are actively seeking grant funding to complete these projects and volunteers from our ranks have been donating services where they can. For example, one TFA member, a retired civil engineer, has provided a drainage plan for the property. Another, a natural resource expert, is working with us to ensure the meadow grasses and other natural elements on the property are stablized. If you have time or services you wish to provide, please contact us at dcobb@antelecom.net. Here's the current schedule of work along with a few of the projects that are partially underway. |
| Funding... |
| By Jan-Feb. 2002 |
| Application for National Register of Historic Places completed and submitted. |
| Tefft Historical Park Major Contributors |
| The following list contains the names of the major contributors of record for the purchase of the Tefft Homestead, completed Nov. 28, 2000. |
| Town of South KingstownRhode Island Department of Environmental Management Nature Conservancy Kingston Water District Private Donations (Biscuit City Assocation/Tefft Family Association and others) Field Ponds Foundation New England Grassroots Environment Fund |
| $80,000 (matching funds) $50,000 $25,000 $53,813 $53,807 $ 4,000 $ 2,500 |
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| News Brief Jan. 28, 2002 The South Kingstown Land Trust (SKLT) has learned that a $165,000 grant, applied for last fall, has not been accepted. While this means no funding is forthcoming for Tefft Historic Park projects planned in 2002-2003, SKLT has announced it intends to apply for a state grant to support a reduced schedule of work. |