Four Winds Farm has been in continual use since 1795 as farm, artistic hub and family home. Through the years, the land has supported flax, apples, raspberries, vegetables, lumber, sheep, goats, pigs, cattle, and chickens. Perhaps due to the influence of the MacDowell Colony, Peterborough has always drawn summer residents from Boston and New York’s art, theater and dance community. Shortly after the farm was purchaced by our great grandmother it became the first home to Mariarden, a summer theatrical and dance institution of cultural significance. The Barn at Four Winds Farm was the original dance studio and theater during the construction of Mariarden’s campus and many artifacts from this era are still in the barn today including stage backdrops, marquis posters, tickets and playbills. For a generation after this period the farm produced apples and berries. In time our mother Duffy Monahon cultivated a deep love and respect for the land, putting all of its nearly 350 acres in nature conservation easement ensuring the use an enjoyment for generations to come.
