The Trustees of Reservations: Ravenswood Park

In September 2024, I visited places and attended events in Essex National Heritage Area as part of its annual event Trails & Sails. My second stop was Ravenswood Park, a six hundred acre nature reserve with hiking trails owned by The Trustees of Reservations and located in Gloucester, MA.

Ravenswood Park was previously owned by Samuel Elwell Sawyer. According to the Cape Ann Museum Library & Archives that now holds his papers, Sawyer a Gloucester native who made his fortune as a ship merchant during the 19^th century. He married Abigail “Abby” Ingersoll Meads (great name), and although they were believed to have a happy life together, they never had any children. The Sawyers were generous and freely gave money to local organizations, including the public schools and library, which was named Sawyer Free Library in their honor. The couple died within a few months of each other, and they donated much of their estate to become the park. As for its name, this came from the book The Bride of Lammermoor, a historical novel by Sir Walter Scott published in 1819.

Visitors to Ravenswood can choose to to stroll down wide and flat Old Salem Road or explore the many color-coded paths through the woods, including Magnolia Swamp Trail, Boulder Field Trail, Ledge Hill Trail, and Fernwood Lake Trail. Vernal pools, swamps, and vistas are marked on the maps found throughout the park. Boulders and narrow bridges offer opportunities to climb for the more adventurous hiker. The weather during my visit was ideal with warm temperatures and bright sun, along with the first of the autumn leaves on the trees. I imagine that parts of this park would become muddy and buggy during spring.

The most unique story in this park concerned Mason Augustus Walton, who was nicknamed the “Hermit of Gloucester”. The Gloucester Woman’s Club placed a metal plaque in his honor in 1933. The only other information on this plaque was that Walton lived in a cabin and died after thirty-three years of living in the park. Further research from the local newspaper The Cricket revealed that Walton had settled in the area after a life of misfortune, including a chronic leg injury, two brothers dying in the Civil War, his best friend dying of yellow fever, and his wife dying while giving birth to their only child, who also died. His decision to live alone in the woods is less surprising with this in mind, and community members took care of him. Walton published a memoir of his experience A Hermit’s Wild Friends in 1903 and died in 1917 at age seventy-eight years old. During his time in the woods, he is believed to have received over fifty thousand guests based on entries into his guest book.

Ravenswood Park is open from sunrise to sunset every day, all year round, and free to the public. The parking lot had plenty of space, and I imagine it never gets full. This site is a great place to relax, enjoy nature, and learn local history. Clear signage is posted at every turn, so it is impossible to get lost, and a wide range of trails allows people of different abilities to get exercise. I gladly return to this reserve the next time I am in the area.

Abby Epplett’s Rating System

Experience: 8/10

Accessibility: 7/10