Life at Minute Man: Natural and Cultural Resource Management

I hope everyone enjoyed their July 4^th holiday week, whether filled with festivities or relaxation. Because July 4^th celebrates a monumental occasion of the American Revolution era, I thought it would be fitting to share my reflections, experiences, and insights thus far as an intern at Minute Man National Historical Park. I am currently half way through my internship. Despite feeling as though these past weeks have flown by, I have been able to learn a lot about Minute Man and its operations, and how my role plays an important part in supporting this valuable park. Minute Man is a smaller national park and having a smaller staff operating this park means there is always something to do as an intern.

Meriam’s Corner.

I would describe Minute Man National Historical Park as rich in artifacts pertaining to the origins of American independence. Located in the towns of Concord, Lexington, and Lincoln in Massachusetts, Minute Man is comprised of 1,038 acres (4.2 sq. km) filled with preserved historic sites, structures, properties, and landscapes associated with battles of the American Revolution that took place in 1775. It also celebrates the divergence in literary tradition from Europe through landmarks central to the United States’ emerging intellectual culture. Surrounding regions of this park have transformed from a semi-rural cultural area to established suburbs that face continual pressures from residential, commercial, and industrial development. Hence, historic and cultural site preservation is a large and unique aspect of park operations at Minute Man. For this summer, I am stationed in park housing, a quaint house amidst quiet surroundings, with close access to the many historic sites and recreational outdoor activities available within this park and many nearby downtown Concord activities.

Park housing for the summer.

My day starts with arriving at one of the two park visitor centers. The visitor center that I arrive at is the North Bridge Visitor Center/Park Headquarters, where Natural and Cultural Resource Manager/team leader Margie Coffin Brown is stationed. Built in 1911, this visitor center was once known as the Buttrick Estate where eight generations of the Buttrick family lived before its purchase by the National Park Service (NPS) in 1962. Major John Buttrick is the most notable family member, as he gave orders to fire upon British soldiers on April 19th, 1775. The estate consists of a formal garden known as the [Stedman] Buttrick Garden along with an extended sunken garden. This garden was built for Stedman Buttrick, Major Buttrick’s great, great grandson.  In the 1950s and 1960s, articles published in National Geographic and Better Homes and Gardens describe the garden as filled with peonies, lilies, and irises. Overlooking the sunken garden balcony is the North Bridge, the site of “the shot heard ‘round the world” that ignited the first battles of the Revolutionary War.

 

 

North Bridge, the site of “the shot heard ‘round the world”.

River overlooking the North Bridge Visitor Center.

The Irises in the Buttrick Garden have bloomed!

Buttrick Garden Party.

North Bridge Visitor Center/Park Headquarters.

I have participated in many team efforts to maintain not only the conditions of the Buttrick Garden, but its many surroundings by garden weeding, trail cleaning, volunteer facilitating, etc. Invasive plant species management has been large component in successfully maintaining this park’s vegetative landscape and health. Given the amount of invasive plants within and surrounding the park, the lack of proper and timely invasive plant management hinders the full preservation and conservation of this landscape and its resources. Having a smaller staff present and responsible for invasive removal is an additional challenge to navigate. Nonetheless, such park maintenance considerations and actions keep visitors happy and impressed with the level of care taken to maintain historical site conditions and natural scenic views.

Volunteers are a valuable asset to this park making it possible for this park to be maintained.

As a Biological and GIS Resource Assistant, I contribute my environmental science and GIS knowledge to complete an inventory of state-listed threatened species within the park and to document those species using GIS in collaboration with partnering agencies and stewardship volunteers. This work is important because surrounding development not only impacts historic and cultural site preservation efforts, but also the presence of rare species within the park. The two species of focus are the Britton’s Violet and Blanding’s turtle. Throughout my internship tenure, I have gained exposure to species identification and habitat via meetings and field work with species experts. In addition, I have facilitated and participated in many park maintenance activities as a member of the Summer Stewardship Program. Being a team member has allowed me to learn more about main features within the park and to grow personally and professionally by working alongside the stewardship team members and volunteers.

I have been able to expand my knowledge on Blanding’s turtle, in particular. Blanding’s turtles (Emydoidea blandingii) are medium-sized, semi-aquatic and freshwater inhabitants. These turtles can be identified by their yellow and black lower shell (plastron), and most noticeably, their long yellow throat and chin. In Massachusetts, Blanding’s turtles are state-listed as Threatened and thus, are a conservation concern. It is believed that their populations are declining due to habitat fragmentation and increased roadkill mortality of adults. Habitat fragmentation specifically disrupts the turtles’ large home range size and long travel distance ability. Blanding’s turtles prefer scrub swamp habitats and are found within and surrounding the northwestern portions of Minute Man where scrub swamps are present or near. Low-cost spatial data and GIS analysis have proven useful for modeling habitat suitability of Blanding’s turtle in many regions where the turtles are found. My goal this summer is to use GIS to document Blanding’s turtle and its habitat suitability within and surrounding Minute Man. Field activity participation has been very useful for improving my understanding when characterizing these turtles.

Young head-started Blanding’s turtle.

Each day at Minute Man is different. The weather is starting to feel like summer, so days outside require more self-motivation and endurance. Through multiple training opportunities, I have been able to take a break indoors and learn about federal GIS and design standards to create products. Whether I am partaking in park maintenance, invasive species management, stewardship volunteer facilitation, rare species research, or training opportunities, I know this work is essential for historic preservation, species conservation, and visitor service experience efforts. I am looking forward to learning more about this park, increasing my invasive plant identification skills, and seeing what each new day unfolds. Please stay tuned for highlights regarding my experiences in the field!

All the best,

Jeanie