Boston philanthropist Eliza Homans gifts 140 acres that helped launch Acadia National Park
In 1908, Eliza Homans transferred 140 acres—including the Beehive and the Bowl—to the Hancock County Trustees, kick-starting the land acquisitions that formed Acadia National Park.
Born Eliza Lee Lothorp in 1832, the Boston-raised woman married Charles Dudley Homans and spent her summers near Bar Harbor on Mount Desert Island. After her husband's death in 1886 and the loss of both children, she acquired about 140 acres that encompassed the Beehive, the Bowl pond, and part of Champlain Mountain. Concerned that the land might become a "Merry-Go-Round" for her grandchildren, she anonymously conveyed the property to the Hancock County Trustees of Public Reservation in May 1908, while preserving limited hunting, fishing and boating privileges.
The deed also allowed the Beehive Mountain Aqueduct Company to continue using the pond for water supply. This early gift ignited a series of acquisitions that grew into Acadia National Park, now exceeding 49,000 acres under the National Park Service. Homans died in 1914 and was later honored with a steep trail named after her near Sieur de Monts.
Why it matters
The donation marked the first private land gift that launched the creation of Acadia National Park, illustrating early conservation efforts.
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