The Ausbon Sargent Land Preservation Trust (ASLPT) closed on a conservation easement on the Trayner property on Shaker Street and Mountain Road in New London on October 27. This brings the total number of Ausbon Sargent protected properties to 139 properties, comprising 11,117 acres of land in its 12-town area of operations, which includes Andover.

Libby was an only child who never married, leaving her no direct heirs. In 1988, Libby began having conversations with Debbie Stanley, Executive Director of ASLPT, about conserving her property. Since Libby was not sure if she would ever need to liquidate any of her land as she grew older, she chose to name ASLPT in her will, gifting the land trust an easement on any remaining property. (Naming a land trust in a will is one option that some landowners choose to manage their land following their death.)

Libby died on March 1, 2016, one month shy of her 101st birthday, and ASLPT was well aware of Libby’s intentions for her land.

Libby’s longtime friend and neighbor, Gerry Gold, spoke of Libby’s wishes. “At the end, Libby got her way. She had brought her parents to New Hampshire to build their shared home and survive the economic struggles of the 1930s. Now she had succeeded in giving her part of New Hampshire a gift of the land she loved.”

The Trayner property is mostly forested, but it does contain a maintained field on the northern edge that could be used for pasturing horses or other farm animals. There is extensive road frontage on both Shaker Street and Mountain Road that offers scenic value, and the property has valuable agricultural and forestry soils. The resources that will be protected on this property are those recommended in the New London Master Plan.

The easement allows for low-impact recreational activities. This newly protected Trayner property feels larger than its 18 acres, as it expands on the already-conserved land in the area including the Low Plain area, ASLPT’s Currier easement, and the Cascade Marsh Wildlife Management Area.