Saving a Historic Landscape in South Woodstock

Jim Sligar and Diana Sattelberger have conserved a small but beautifully scenic property in the village of South Woodstock. The two bought the 12-acre “Kendall Farm” property in 2011 to save it from a proposed subdivision. They’ve donated a conservation easement to UVLT to make sure that possibility will never arise again.

Ninety percent of the property is open pasture and hay land used primarily by the abutting Kedron Valley Stables, which is operated by Paul “Chip” Kendall, who owns property across the road and whose family has lived in South Woodstock for generations. Portions of the property line follow the Kedron Brook, VT Route 106 and Kendall Road, as well as the “Ransom-Kendall Cemetery” along its southern boundary.  These two families, the Ransoms and the Kendalls, were intertwined throughout the history of South Woodstock, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the structures on the Kendall Farm.