Coe Property

The Coe easement in Albany sits within the magnificent Lamphear Brook watershed and contains two parcels: 63 acres owned by Henry and 58 acres conveyed to his son Jesse in 2021. The 2015 easement preserves the largely woodland property between 4th class Shuteville Road and Horace Way Road in the upper reaches of the watershed. Lamphear Brook bisects the property and ultimately flows into the Black River. Internal logging roads allow the continuation of forest management practices on both parcels, while Jesse’s land is also managed for maple sugaring.

An uphill walk along Shuteville Road reveals 1,800 feet of beautiful cascades and pools on the Jesse Coe parcel. Behind a gate, hikers will find a plank bridge leading to a logging road open to the public for hiking. The habitat is excellent for moose, deer, bear, and other mammals with woodland flowers evident on the trail in spring and summer.

A hike along Horace Way Road to Henry Coe’s parcel can be a wet one. A wetland complex with a very active beaver presence is adjacent to his parcel’s northern end. It requires that Henry actively maintain culverts on his property to maintain water flow and prevent flooding. Development is confined to an authorized two-acre homestead site in an open meadow off Horace Way Road

Henry has owned portions of the land since 1961 when he purchased a piece of Albany woodland with insurance from the loss of his father, a submariner, in WW II. Moving to West Glover in 1968, he raised a 40-cow milking herd and served five years on Glover’s Planning Commission. Henry now resides in Danville. His three sons and six grandchildren all live in the area. He said, “Walking in the Albany woodlot gives me a sense of peace, knowing that its streams, ravines, falls, and forested hillsides are conserved with the NRLT.”  

The Coe properties sit in a special location very near the 87-acre Lowell property conserved the same year by Allison van Akkeran. The NRLT has designated the area as one of special interest with its relatively untouched natural watershed. We want to work with other interested landowners to protect additional water, soil, timber, and scenic resources. 

Henry has taken the lead in organizing the Friends of Lamphear Brook to interest other landowners in conserving their properties. He has also played a major part in cleaning up a sizable junkyard located next to the brook on Shuteville Road.