Farm Days @ Waters Farm in Sutton, MA

Rounding out my long weekend of New England History, on Sunday, October 16, I volunteered at the 42^nd annual Farm Days, held at Waters Farm in Sutton, Massachusetts. The festival is based around the farm house and property of the Waters family, some of whom still volunteer at the event. Their ancestor, Stephen Waters, built the original red house in 1757, and subsequent generations added onto the building.

A favorite fact of the family is that the rare Sutton Beauty variety of apple was developed on the farm. The Waters family lived in the house for six generations, until Dorothea Waters Moran donated the home and its contents to the Town of Sutton. Since then, Waters Farm Preservation Inc has done a remarkable job preserving the property and hosting fun community events. The homestead has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1985, and those records may be digitized in the future.

A special treat at Farm Days was the large show of antique cars and tractors. I admittedly know little about how these machines work, but I was impressed by the quality and variety at the event. Cars ranged from Model Ts and classic Mustangs and novelty vehicles, like a Nydam Oil tanker and an early hearse. The tractors ranged in size in color, with several running their engines for demonstration.

Waters Farm is important to the Sutton community and to New England history as a whole. Events like Farm Days make history accessible to people of all ages and provide an opportunities for parents and grandparents to talk about their family history to children. Many visitors find it easier to access history through an informal house tour and by watching demonstrations than inside a museum. I hope the knowledge and enthusiasm of the costumed interpreters was contagious, so another generation has caught the history bug!