Mayor Scott Galvin invites residents to stop by the Cranberry Bog this Saturday, May 6, 2017, at 2 p.m. for a special bench dedication in conjunction with Conservation Day and the City’s 375th Anniversary.
The dedication, near the Nason Terrace and Washington Circle entrance, will follow a morning of Conservation Day volunteer cleanup work at Horn Pond, the Cranberry Bog and the Middlesex Canal. All residents are encouraged to pitch in and help at any one of these locations, starting at 9 a.m.
The new bench is being supported with donations from the generous sponsors of Woburn’s 375th Anniversary. It is being placed for residents to enjoy in an area of the Cranberry Bog where a group of residents, the Woburn Residents Environmental Network (WREN), the Conservation Commission, the EPA and the DPW have pitched in to rehabilitate this historic and beautiful area.
The result is a landscaped vista, which is part of the 29.5-acre Cranberry Bog Conservation Area, an historic area where cranberries were farmed from 1908 until the late 1950s. Many area residents have fond memories of skating at the cranberry bog, which was flooded each year from November until April to protect the plants from frost.
When the bog was operational, Woburn youths did much of the cranberry harvesting in the Fall after school. Cranberries were shipped to the Faneuil Hall marketplace, where they were purchased by Ocean Spray for production into sauce, jelly and juice.
The Cranberry Bog Conservation Area was acquired in 1968 for the purpose of protecting the Aberjona River Watershed.
We are grateful to our growing list of sponsors for making all of these events, including the purchase and dedication of this special bench, possible. For more information about upcoming Woburn 375th Events, go to www.woburn375.com