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The Capital Region Land Conservancy closed Feb. 1 on a sizable land conservation deal in the Varina District that will allow the tract to be maintained as green space for eventual public use.
The non-profit CRLC raised nearly seven million dollars to purchase the 871-acre Malvern Hill Farm, the only documented place in the United States that has seen U.S. troop activity during the three major military conflicts on American soil. The location was the base for the Marquis de Lafayette during the summer of 1781, an encampment for the Virginia militia during the war of 1812, and the site of a historic 1862 Civil War battle.
CRLC will place a conservation easement on nearly half of the Malvern Hill Farm and transfer it to Henrico County. The land will be open to the public for recreation and historical interpretation in the future. JRA will provide kayak and canoe access on Turkey Island Creek, connecting paddlers to the James River, the Captain John Smith National Historic Trail, and Presquile National Wildlife Refuge. The National Park Service ultimately will take ownership of nearly 400 acres for enlargement of the Richmond National Battlefield Park.
The $6.6 million purchase was made possible with funding help from the Cabell Foundation, the Mary Morton Parsons Foundation, the Richard S. Reynolds Foundation, the American Battlefield Protection Program, the Virginia Battlefield Preservation Fund, the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation, Henrico County, the James River Association (JRA), and numerous private donors. The Conservation Fund, a national nonprofit based in Arlington, Virginia, provided a $2 million bridge loan for the remaining funds needed to purchase.
For details about the purchase and plans for the site, visit capitalregionland.org.
