Baker's Meadow

(Video by Andover TV)

Features:

More than 145 species of birds, including herons, migrating ducks and nesting Canadian geese, have been observed in Baker’s Meadow. The wetlands also provide vital habitat for muskrat, mink and beaver (see beaver lodge in picture below).

History:

Baker's Meadow, really a pond, was named for Dr. Symonds Baker, who owned most of the area during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. During the 1920s when muskrat fur was in fashion, Alexander Henderson dammed his land here to form a pond for his muskrats. He was wiped by the 1929 crash, but he maintained the area for small birds and animals. In 1958, Harold Rafton, a tireless conservationist, persuaded the Hendersons to sell their land to AVIS.

Lawrence Eagle Tribune article by Bill Kirk (June 24, 2012)
"Bakers Meadow and Sakowich reservations make for a great walk in the woods"