The Brewster Conservation Trust has acquired a tract of about six acres at the southeast corner of Lower Road and Briar Lane. It is mostly maple swamp with some fingers of higher ground and was purchased from Dennis W. “Billy” Dugan, whose family once had extensive holdings in the area. Parts of this lot had been used in the past for gardening and for pasture.
“We felt strongly that this low-lying land should be kept in its natural state. Several of the neighbors agreed and they contributed to make the acquisition possible, ” said Bob Williams, BCT fund-raising chair. “The Trust appreciates their support very much.”
BCT and Dugan agreed that a small plot beside Briar Lane will be cleared, and a memorial plaque will be mounted on a boulder in memory of Dugan’s parents, Dennis E. Dugan Jr., who died on the site in November 1978, and his mother Dorothea Dugan. “The purchase brings BCT holdings north of Rt. 6A, mostly along Lower Road and side streets, to just over 100 acres.
Some of the parcels are swamp and woodlands, but the list also includes the fertile meadow now used by some 40 Brewster residents as the community garden.