Since PLC acquired the Florence M. Tarr Wildlife Sanctuary in the summer of 2017, a dedicated group of volunteers have been working with PLC staff to transform the property’s unofficial network of mountain bike trails into a marked trail system for walkers, bikers, trail runners and the occasional horseback rider. The final round of trail improvements and re-routes were completed in August, and a trail dedication is planned for later this fall.
The “Lo-Flo” trail, one of the two trails on the property, is a 1.7-mile loop which can be walked in about an hour. Anyone familiar with the trail probably assumes that the name “Lo Flo” is based on the fact that the trail is characterized by gently flowing curves and is on the lower-elevation portion of the property. While this is all true, the trail is also named Lo Flo in honor of Florence Tarr, who bequeathed the hundreds acres of undeveloped land that today form the Tarr Sanctuary.
Florence Tarr was a private person, but we’ve managed to piece together some of her story through Bedford town histories, discussions with Bedford residents, and documents related to the Florence Tarr Trust. The story of the Florence Tarr Wildlife Sanctuary starts around the time of the Civil War. Florence’s great-grandfather, a sea captain, became disabled in a seafaring accident and settled in Bedford on 120 acres of farmland and “wild land” that he purchased in 1861. By 1900 the land was owned by Florence’s grandfather, and her father also resided at the family homestead located on the property. Florence was born in 1907 and was raised in Bedford. As an adult, she worked as a school teacher in Goffstown, Portsmouth, and Nashua.
Later in life, Florence’s main focus became the protection of wildlife. The way to accomplish this, in her view, was to purchase and put aside open land as a refuge where animals would be protected from hunting and other pressures of human civilization. Over a period of years she acquired property adjacent, and in close to proximity to, the Tarr family homestead. By the time she passed away, Florence had accumulated many hundreds of acres of property in northern Bedford and southern Goffstown.
Upon Florence’s death in 1993, all of the land came under the jurisdiction of a newly-formed Florence M. Tarr Trust, which was charged with managing the land in keeping with Florence’s wishes. Florence stated in her will that “I have long had as one of my principal aims and purposes the maintenance, preservation and enhancement of all lands which I may own at the date of my death as natural sanctuaries for wildlife, in which there shall be no maiming or killing of animals, no hunting or trapping, no target practicing, no free running of dogs, and no dumping of toxic chemicals.”
The Tarr Trust was legally dissolved in the summer of 2017, and PLC took ownership of the 332-acre preserve. As the new steward of the Tarr Sanctuary, PLC is required to carry on Florence’s mandate that the land be preserved as a sanctuary for wildlife. PLC asks that all users abide by the guidelines posted at the entrances, including keeping dogs on leashes. Next time you’re out enjoying the Lo Flo trail, take a moment to remember Florence Tarr and appreciate the efforts she made to protect so much land in this crowded corner of our state.
Written by Dave Butler, PLC’s volunteer property monitor for the Florence M. Tarr Wildlife Sanctuary, and was named PLC’s Volunteer of the Year in 2017.
Photos courtesy of J. Tarr