“The First Gift,” by J.R. Libby
This poem honors the first large gift of land to the Hancock County Trustees of Public Reservations toward what would become Acadia National Park. Eliza Homans of Boston made the gift of about 140 acres, including parts of Champlain and the Beehive, in 1908.
Dorr has his mountain,
and Champlain his,
while Brunnows name
is etched across the precipice
Brewer, Mcfarland, Young
stand tall in the sun,
yet no peak
bears the name Homans.
From Anemone Cave
to Sand Beach
and the Beehive which
to the heavens reach
these are the gifts
Eliza Homans bestowed
upon you and me,
Great head was hers
as was Stage Cave
and high sea cliffs
where salty breezes lift
to hiking trails
millions have braved
she simply gave
it all away
never once asking
that her family name
mark some beach
or mountain peak,
her gift lay way
so that all might seek
the beauty of
this picturesque place
we call Acadia.
Eliza Homans –
remember the name,
for it was she that gave
the park its first gift,
from sunlit hills
to shinning sea
to the shores of
eternity – the wealth
of which we can not behold
in an hour or a day,
her gift included
one side of Champlain
and the glacial pond
known as the bowl,
not until after
she had passed away
did Dorr have a path
built to honor her name,
a short path
compared to most,
with a rock donut hole
and a granite passage way
that path is there
if you can find the way,
the start of which
is nearly hidden today
her first gift marked
the seed of a park
which grew over time
to what we have today
a park like none other
from gifts stitched together.
Leave a Reply