High Acres Farm is a 176-acre homestead located in the small town of Shelburne, Vermont — along the eastern shores of Lake Champlain, looking out across the water at the Adirondack Mountains of New York.

The land at High Acres Farm was occupied by Missiquoi Abenaki until the mid-1700s, when it was colonized for agricultural use.

In 1886, the land was acquired by William Seward and Lila Vanderbilt Webb, as a part of their 3,800-acre agricultural estate, Shelburne Farms — which was landscape-designed by Frederick Law Olmsted of Central Park fame.

In 1948, Electra Havemeyer Webb and James Watson Webb gifted the land for High Acres Farm to their youngest son, Harry Havemeyer Webb to create a home for his nascent family with Kate de Forest Jennings.

In 1952, the historic Main House was completed — decorated with an assortment of eagle regalia, as a nod to Electra’s interest in early Americana.

Harry and Kate raised three daughters at High Acres Farm: Kate Brewster (born in 1948), Laura Havemeyer (born in 1950), and Dundeen Cromwell (born in 1952).

In the 1960s, Harry and Kate divorced, leaving Harry as the sole steward of the land until his death in 1975.

For the next forty years, High Acres Farm was home to Harry’s eldest daughter, Kate Webb Harris, who lived there until her death in 2016.

After her death, Kate entrusted the ongoing stewardship of High Acres Farm to her children — Jonathan J. Harris and Amanda Herzberger — along with their cousin, Michael Darling.

In 2017, they began a major renovation of the historic Main House, working with Selin + Selin Architecture and Smith & McClain builders to create a beautiful contemporary gathering place.

In 2019, Jonathan and Amanda released a new identity system and website for High Acres Farm, as a way of expressing their intentions for its future.

The symbol system emerges from the concept, “Human | Nature” — signifying a thriving symbiosis between human culture and the natural world.

Today, High Acres Farm is managed by Jonathan, Amanda, and Michael, along with Jeff Herzberger and Frank Galipeau, who maintain its buildings and grounds — while welcoming guests for weekly family rentals.

In the coming years, they hope to evolve High Acres Farm into a vibrant center of learning and making: a resource for the town of Shelburne, the state of Vermont, and visitors from near and far.

In Fragments has been a way of preparing the place for that future.

More information is available at highacresfarm.org, with updates via Instagram.