If there is a place in Weston that inspires obsession, it is the ruins of the historic Merriam Barn (circa 1876). The Owl has written about it a number of times and can be found walking around it at least once a week. The vastness of the ruins, the gigantic ramp now to nowhere, and the ancient sugar maples standing guard are just magnetic to those of us who wonder what once was. If you don’t know it, you can find its ramp along the driveway to the Brush Dump on Merriam Street, and a fire road (pedestrian and Land’s Sake vehicle only) to the south.

Weston Conservation staff and WFTA trustees and volunteers will return this Saturday, November 19 from 10 am to 12 noon to continue the work that started last November with the Boy Scouts and continued in December 2021. Over the summer, a teen crew also created a new trail along the outside of the walls between the ramp and the onion field–the walls will be further cleared of invasives and scruffiness. Who knows what discoveries await us? You can see a number of rusted old tools and milk cans on the informal “display case” of one paddock wall.

Here’s the official stuff:

Join Weston Conservation Staff and WFTA volunteers on Saturday, November 19th, from 10:00 a.m. to noon- we’ll clear brush away from the stone walls at the old historic Merriam Barn foundation and the original stone walls surrounding Green Power Farm. 

Park at the Community Garden on Merriam Street, across from the brush dump. Both Merriam Barn and Green Power fields are a short walk from the Community Garden. MAP.

No previous experience is necessary. To sign up, or if you have questions, contact conservation@westonma.gov.. (Ages below 16 need to be accompanied by a parent.)

Bring work-appropriate clothing, water and snacks, and work gloves. (Long pants, socks, and closed-toed shoes are strongly recommended. There may be poison ivy in the area.

We will have enough tools for all, but please bring loppers, a pruning saw, or a string trimmer, if you have them.

We hope to see you there and don’t forget to RSVP!