Natural Lands - The Magazine of Natural Lands Fall/Winter 2019, Issue 155 | Page 8

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the bob-tail nag.
Aristedes Welch purchased Erdenheim Farm in 1862 and with Flora Temple, the
racehorse with a snipped tail referenced in Stephen Foster’s “Camptown Races,”
established world-class breeding stables that sired many prize-winning horses, in-
cluding a Derby winner at Epsom and a Kentucky Derby winner. George Widener, Jr.
later continued the thoroughbred tradition as did his nephew Fitz Eugene Dixon, Jr.,
to whom Widener had bequeathed much of the land alongside a 113-acre portion
he left to Natural Lands.
That rich equine history lives on with a number of Morgan horses and the
reintroduction of thoroughbreds. This year on the Equestrian Tract, the old name
“Erdenheim Stud” will
return, “stud” being the
traditional name for a
farm committed to the
breeding of horses. A
renovated indoor rid-
ing arena, a mile-long
racing track, and acres
of pasture will provide
ample space for the
care and training of
these athletic animals.
rare, but not lost.
The Arapawa goat is the
rarest goat on the planet.
Now, thanks to a partnership
between the Philadelphia
Zoo and the Erdenheim Farm
Foundation, the Arapawa’s
small global population—an
estimated 450 goats—is on
the rise.
Centuries ago, the “Old
English” goat was a common
breed in England. Colonial
explorers took these aboard as a source of meat and dairy and left a flock behind
on the Arapawa islands of New Zealand with the hopes of being able to return to a
source of food. Though the explorers never returned, the goats multiplied and made
the island home. Years passed and this breed of goat fell out of favor for domestica-
tion and eventually became extinct, everywhere except Arapawa.
Arapawa goats are classified as critically endangered by the American Livestock
Conservancy. Fortunately, Erdenheim Farm has provided a safe and fertile home
for Crowley (a buck), Basil, and Venus (both does). This spring, their population
doubled with the successful births of Tigger and twins, Diana and Zeus. These new
additions are key in the worldwide effort to save their breed from extinction.
tranquility amidst one of Phila-
delphia’s most densely populated
metropolitan pockets.
This year marks the tenth an-
niversary of the transaction that
saved Erdenheim Farm. The com-
plex, multi-party transaction was
finalized in 2009, and was honored
by the Pennsylvania legislature as a
“remarkable example of the excel-
lent work that can be accomplished
through public-private partner-
ships.” It took the collaborative
efforts of Natural Lands, White-
marsh Township, the Whitemarsh
Foundation, Montgomery County,
the Pennsylvania Department of
Conservation and Natural Resourc-
es, the Colonial School District, the
Dixon family, and multiple private
funders to ensure that 426 contig-
uous acres could be placed under
conservation easement, securing its
future as preserved open space.
Success of the effort, however,
hinged on finding a family enthusiastic
to take on the responsibility of owning
and caring for the property. For Peter
and Bonnie McCausland, the opportu-
nity to purchase Erdenheim Farm rep-
resented the realization of a long-time
dream of owning a farm and a chance
to preserve the iconic property for the
benefit of the community. “I read a lot
of British novels as a young man and
I was drawn by the romance of living
on a large, open property,” said Peter
McCausland. Bonnie grew up near the
Appalachian Trail in Connecticut so
had spent much of her youth in nature.