General Information

This property is actually a compilation of 28 different parcels which encompass nearly 2,150 acres in the southeastern portion of the island that contain unique geological and natural communities. One of the area’s most dominant natural features is its abundance of scrub oak which makes a perfect home for a large part of the island’s deer population. The thick brush, large quantities of foliage and lack of defined trails offer the deer an ideal respite but can often present challenges to the hikers.

Madequecham Valley, located just east of Nantucket Memorial Airport, was formed more than 10,000 years ago when rapidly-flowing melt water from the last glacier formed small rivers flowing south to the open sea. Madequecham is a particularly large and deep example of one of these outwash channels. Further east along the south shore are shallower but similar channels, including Toupchue and Forked Pond Valleys, and to the west are channels that later filled with water, including Long, Hummock, and Miacomet Ponds.

Directions

The Madequecham and Tom Nevers areas have several different access points. The most popular is to follow Milestone Road 2.6 miles from the rotary and turn right onto Russell’s Way. Follow Russell’s Way 1.3 miles to its junction with New South Road. There are several areas to park along the road and visitors can access the area from a number of places. Madequecham is also accessible via Madequecham Valley Road off of New South (or Bunker) Road. There are several parking areas that are apparent. There are no facilities. There are several large parcels of private land that abut these Foundation properties. We ask that all visitors respect posted land and refrain from entering these lands.

Habitat

Back from the coast, the predominant habitats in this area of the island are scrub oak and pitch pine barrens. After extensive sheep grazing ceased in the early 1900’s, scrub oak and pitch pine began to colonize these sites. These species are well adapted to the acidic, nutrient-poor nature of Nantucket’s soils. Scrub oak is an extremely tough and resilient shrub that forms dense, impenetrable thickets. Pitch pine was planted by Josiah Sturgis along the Milestone Road to serve as a windbreak in 1847. The trees have since thrived in the sandy, disturbed soils that often characterize road edges, and are often still referred to as “Sturgis’ Pines.”

Donors

Madequecham

Janet R. McIntyre
H. Ward Reighley
Ann R. Ferguson
Barbara A. Ferguson
Elizabeth R. Ferguson
G. Neil Ferguson

Purchased by NCF

Tom Nevers

Walter Beinecke, Jr., The Larsen Fund, and the Nantucket Ornithological Association, Ann B. Oliver
Caroline B. Pauley, Peter S. Pauley, H. Williamson Ghriskey, Jackson S. Bond, and Dr. James W. Wall
Purchased by NCF and gifts of Lucy Fowlkes Breed and Mr. & Mrs. Allen P. Mills
Mr. & Mrs. Sherwood W. Smith
Mr. & Mrs. William B. Coolidge
Jeffrey Kaschuluk
Bequest of Susan H. Timken; an additional 7.9 acres were received and, with the consent of the estate, conveyed to the Nantucket Islands Land Bank Commission
Sandpiper Close Real Estate Trust (with the consent of the donors, this property was conveyed to the Nantucket Islands Land Bank Commission in 2005)
William V. Lawrence
Mrs. Paul Mellon

 

 

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Madequecham

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