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The Beauty of New England Stone Walls
A collection of images celebrating the beauty of New England stone walls – all submitted by our talented readers.
By Yankee Magazine|Apr 06 2022|
Coffee By Design | Portland, Maine
Photo Credit : Katherine KeenanAlong with lighthouses, covered bridges, and white-steeped churches, New England stone walls are one of our region’s most enduring reminders of the past. They line country roads, border cemeteries, mark the edges of fields, and even snake through the woods — sometimes seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Here, we present a collection of images celebrating the beauty of New England stone walls in fall. All were submitted by our very talented readers.
The Beauty of New England Stone Walls
Photo Credit : Stephen Clarke
Photo Credit : Jeff Folger
Photo Credit : Fred Webster
Photo Credit : Donna Spiewak
Photo Credit : Laura Stone
Photo Credit : Ian Slater
Photo Credit : Joani Cyr
Photo Credit : Brenda Bentley
Photo Credit : Renee Hockett
Photo Credit : Michelle Langan
Photo Credit : Dan Frykenberg
Photo Credit : Jeff Turner
Photo Credit : Fred Webster
Are you a fan of New England stone walls?
This post was first published in 2013 and has been updated.
SEE MORE:
New England Covered Bridges | Photos
New England Lighthouses | Photos
75 Classic New England Foods
Stephen, Your photos of New England stone walls really Rock My Boat. Beautiful, unique, tender, gorgeous, sensitive, quiet and peaceful. Thank You for your gift. Jeanne
All of these little tours of New England make me so homesick I could cry ! Please do not ever stop them. They are truly beautiful !
I agree with the other Carol…..these beautiful photos make me yearn to be back in New England. Gorgeous photographs depicting wonderful history.
I was born in VT and now live in Mass and have no desire to live anywhere else. Florida in the winter. Bah, humbug. These stone wall pictures are beyond my imagination.
Really giving me nostalgic feels right now.
We played on them as kids and hid things in the nooks and crannies. I also remember that snakes love stone walls as much as we did.
would love to see photos of stone walls in the spring season of flowers.
I understand the comments about never wanting to leave NE. I left in 1987 and returned Nov 2016. What a beautiful place
That was one of my favorite things when we lived in NH. I often thought about the people who cleared those fields then constructed those stone walls, how hard that work was! There is their legacy, still.
Wonderful/nostalgic to see these walls again -from way out here in Wisconsin. Next time you update, how about those beautiful granite walls along the roadside in Mason, NH – like the one across the road from the Uncle Sam house?
I lived in NH and Maine for 13 years, teaching. I lived in the country and loved my drives to and from school along roads with stone walls on each side. I remember in the winters the little chipmunks would peer out from the little holes they’d dug in the snow along the walls and I”d see them scampering along the top of the walls as well. The walls are SO beautiful. I miss them in all seasons!
I’d love to hear a bit about the native American walls which are slightly different than farmer’s walls.
Look for old stone walls in the woods along the Interstate Highways in the winter.They are very interesting.
Moved to Virginia 3 years ago.. to be near children . miss N.E. terribly.. buying Yankee magazine and enjoy stuff on line .. lived in Ma., N.H. and CT.
This morning as I look out my den window viewing snow on the ground at least what is left , rain, and fog these beautiful pictures take me back to warmer days and beautiful images of trees changing their colors here in Michigan. We don’t see many stone fences in MI. Thanks for the tour of New England stone fences.
I have lived in New Hampshire and Massachusetts my entire life. At age 65 I have driven by countless gorgeous stone fences in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, Connecticut and Rhode Island. I have always loved looking at them and admired the difficult work constructing them. On my property I have 2 huge granite block walls and a smaller stone wall that is about 2 feet tall. There are a few “left over” granite blocks, also, on my property. Yes, the down side is snakes really do love these granite walls. The biggest one I have seen is a 6 foot black racer coming up through an edge of one of those walls. I have been extremely afraid of snakes since I was in first grade. I saw a little, about 6″ long harmless garter snake, it was green, I remember, on my way home from school one day and my mother had to drive me to school for a week after that encounter. I also had a rather large snake that was living in one of the big walls die near one of my cars and animal control would not remove it for me. I had to wait 4 days, in July, to take it to our town dump, with a friend, with whom I grew up who lived right across the street from me in the first house I lived in, who went mountain climbing frequently with her father, who my father knew from Hebron Academy, who taught her not to be afraid of snakes. We got a large black heavy-duty plastic bag, which I held outside the car window, while I was driving to our town dump, which fortunately is only one mile from my home. That snake smelled horrendous. I will never forget that experience as long as I live!
I love seeing the rock walls when I go back to Maine to visit. I often wonder how old many of them are. This article and many others make me very homesick for my home state of Maine. Thank you for all the wonderful memories.
Growing up in Connecticut we had an old friend that lived at the University. In the 1950’s he built a beautiful stone wall in front of the school of agriculture. I don’t know how he got it so precise, as it is very even and compact, but it took him a couple of years at least to complete. I miss my home state so very much, and no where else will ever be “home” no matter where I live.
I grew up in Maine…..now live in Oregon….do not let any one tell you that the NW is like New England. It isn’t ! All it does here is rain unendingly all winter and is 3 digit hot and dry all summer….no real 4 seasons. I get so homesick I do not know what I would do without Yankee magazine. Please never ever stop. Carol
Sounds like me! If not for the snow and cold I’d probably still be there. Where in Oregon are you? I’m in Brookings.
I am in Oregon City. I like Brookings. If there were jobs I’d settle in Brookings.
I used to live in Montana. Cold is colder in Montana. I’d still move to Maine.
I am in McMinnville,Or
I live in Oregon and have visited New England. I am ready to move to Maine. Too many people and not enough peace. New England is God’s country!
I grew up in Rhode Island ,now live in New Mexico, I had a stone wall in my yard and across the road was an old grave yard with a rock wall around it. I used to go and lay on the wall to find solstice, and enjoy all the seasons and I truly believe New England is the most beautiful place in the United States. Love Yankee Magazine! The stone walls are part of our cultural heritage and unique and exclusive to New England. Loved your article!
Trudy, I think that you lie on the wall to find solace (comfort), not solstice (change of seasons). But I agree with you.
Thanks so much for that lesson, Susanna
I have lived in Westport, Mass. most of my life and am amazed to see ROUND rock walls that are common in that area.Sure haven’t seen any here in Fla.
Thelma B. Smith Lecanto, Fla.
Coming home soon to N.E. Such a beautiful place!!!
When I look at the photos of these walls, I think of the pioneers who cleared the land for their farms and had to do something with all the stones in the land. I have traced my husband’s roots to Plymouth and Maine and think of them trying to farm in that land, before forsaking the effort and moving to Minnesota.
My grandfather showed me how to build a stone wall using the large rocks he plowed up with his harrow!It was my job to pick them up out of the furrows and put them on the top of the harrow until we got to the edge of the field then we would set them aside until we were done plowing and harrowing and set them strategically on the wall .That was 50 years ago and I still love those walls we built.
Nan
I love your story.
I find pictures of New England walls bring peace to me as I look back on my childhood on a dairy farm in Stonington, CT. Interstate I-95 brought an end to that. The town has no real farms left, whereas it used to have thirty. I feel sad about how I took it all for granted while young.
It is truly amazing how large the stones are that support a lot of walls from beneath the surface.
It is also eventful to be able to see walls in wooded areas that become visible during the winter.
I’m moving back to Connecticut after 4 years in California and am really looking forward to seeing the stone walls again. They’re are many in my home town of Guilford and along the shady roads along the shoreline. Can’t wait to see them again.
There is the saying that if the USA had been settled West to East, instead, of course, from East to West, that New England would still belong to the Indians. Well, yes, farming was tough in New England, but, the beauty of the region, the mountains, lakes, rivers and seashores and wonderful stone walls, running hither and yon, make our American northeastern region special. Then, adding our cultural cuisine of our tasty staples, such as maple syrup, lobster, clams, chowder, pumpkins, baked beans, strawberry rhubarb pie and other culinary favorites, adds cultural flavor. Then, with weather that changes from moment to moment, all makes New England special. Opps, did I forget New England sports? Where else in the country can we cheer on with such fervor, the Boston Red Sox, New England Patriots, The Boston Bruins and the Boston Celtics. Ahhh, lucky we to be living, here! Richard Kay, New Hampshire, USA.
The first home that I ever owned was on a hilltown lot out side of Amherst, Massachusetts. The south property line was delineated by an irregular stone wall for the entire 522 feet. The public road right-of-way was also lined with stone walls on both sides as was the abandoned logging road that ran off to the west. Stone walls are who we are!
Pachamama: Search the term “Ceremonial Stone Landscapes” which includes those Native American stone walls – Qusukqaniyutôkanash or Pumiyotôkansh.
I love the stone walls of N.E. But my absolute favorites are the ones I see while hiking the many trails in our region. I see the wall running along the rutted tracks of a long fogotten road. I feel like I’m on a journey back through time.
I have lived in New Hampshire for 25 years and love the stone walls so much that I had to build my own. You should read the books by Kevin Gardner or hear his lecture about stone wall building. My stone wall has a wrought iron gate with granite posts and a grinding stone built into the wall. How do I send you a photo?
I love stone walls so much that I’m building my own bit of history, scavenging good-sized rocks from a tumbledown wall deep in the woods and dragging them down on sled to edge my brick patio. Just one smashed finger thus far.
When we moved into our house in 1968, our neighbor (born in the 1890s) told us that the stone walls in this part of northeastern Pennsylvania were built in the early 20th century. Itinerant wall builders worked for 10¢ a day plus meals and the opportunity to sleep in your barn.
I find New England stone walls so fascinating, especially the ones that you see in the woods, that go on as far as the eye can see. My fascination led me to write a YA romance novel “The Stone Wall Crossing: Abby Whittier’s Journey Through Time”, available on Amazon and other online sellers. The reviews have been encouraging, and people from as far away as the UK have commented on the book’s FB page that they want to visit New England to see the sites I mention in the novel!
I read Kevin Gardner’s book, “the Granite Kiss” which is fascinating. The “kiss” is when you catch your finger between two granite stones as you construct your wall. I highly recommend this as Kevin grew up in the family business of constructing these walls.
Robert Frost said in his poem “Mending Wall” that something doesn’t like a wall. The comments concerning these photos might just make a statement that he was mistaken. I find that even the walls that have, over time, lost their rocks and, so, their shape somehow still endure and will long after we, who saw their rugged beauty have passed on.
Circumstances beyond my control caused me to leave New England.Lived mostly in Rhode Island, but also in Massachusetts and Connecticut. Particularly miss RI’s stone fences.They are beautiful examples skilled and sophisticated hand work. Yankee Magazine keeps my spirits up, both breaking my heart and mending my soul. Thank you.
I agree. Rhode Island has such beautiful stone walls.
Due to being quarantined in my home because of the pandemic, I am reading all of the articles that I have saved from “Yankee” and never erased. I grew up in
Massachusetts (living both in Lowell and the Berkshires). I have now lived in NJ for the past 45 years and never a day goes by that I do not think of New England. I went to school in Boston and worked in the original John Hancock building.
However, I do live in a small village town in NJ that is typical of New England and this does help me with my homesickness! Yankee does keep me in touch with all my memories from the past. (In particular, the article on the stonewalls of New England. I have such fond memories of so many of them.) Thanks for this wonderful article that refreshes my thoughts. I will read it over and over again, whenever, I am feeling blue. As a P.S., the village that I live in here in NJ has an very old cemetary that has an equally old stonewall that is still is beautiful condition. We just lost the oldest oak tree in America due to its old age!
Grrrrreat job on the STONE WALL presentation. NE wouldn’t be NE without stonewalls! Thanks,
Rique’ Lydem
Stone walls are the epitomy of New England with their strength, purpose and tradition. My parents had a (then) 200-year old, 244 acre farm in western Massachusetts with stone walls scattered throughout the property. Even as a child I loved them. Now living 1500 miles away I miss them, but still love them. Nostalgia! To me they speak New England.