Rhode Island Buying Jerimoth Hill summit

Providence Journal Issue of December 6, 2011 announcing state purchase of Jerimoth HillThe Providence Journal reports today (December 6, 2011) that Rhode Island is buying the Jerimoth Hill for $100,000 from Brown University.

The Highpointers Club through Stony Burk and Dave Covill have been working on making the summit more accessible for nearly two decades after neighbor the late Henry Richardson asserting private property access blocked but Dave and Stony worked with him to provide access on a few days out of the year. Richardson’s property was later sold to the Mosby’s who enthusiastically opened access. They sold their property to the state. But the summit itself had been Brown University property through the entire period as it was a “little Mauna Kea” being used by Brown’s astronomy department.

The Providence article notes:

After a five-year effort, the state is set to approve the purchase of about for $100,000 Brown selling 5.5 acres at the hill’s summit owned by Brown University since 1952. That land, when combined with 4.6 acres the state bought three years ago, guarantees public access to the top of the hill and allows the state to move forward with improvements to the area. Under a proposed agreement, which the State Properties Commission is
scheduled to consider on Tuesday, the state will purchase the Brown land for $100,000, in exchange for allowing the university to use a 2,000-squarefoot
portion of the property over a 50-year period. (Currently, the university’s astronomy department has a storage shed and fixtures for portable telescopes, but no permanent observatory at the top of the hill.) “It has been a long, long time coming,” said Lisa Primiano, of the state
Department of Environmental Man agement, which has been coordinating the purchase of the Jerimoth Hill lands. “So, to have it this close to being tied up is really pretty amazing.”

Links:
*Providence Journal Article (in flash and so may move)
*Boston.com article

Stony Burk shows the Rhode Island property owners
Stony Burk updating the Highpointers Board of Directors in 2006.

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3 Responses to Rhode Island Buying Jerimoth Hill summit

  1. Jean Trousdale says:

    Fantastic! I know that Stony and Dave put in countless hours helping this to occur. Thanks, guys, and kudos to the state of Rhode Island.
    Jean Trousdale

  2. steve cockerham says:

    Accessing certain highpoints has intimidated me for years. This aquisition tears down one of the barriers to our fun-filled agenda. Thanks to all involved in reaching this milestone!

  3. Eric Johnson says:

    Walter and Marjorie Turner were my grand parents. They were great outdoors people that considered themselves only as temporary caretakers to the land. They never would deny anyone from exploring there property. That is why they gave the peak to Brown. I tried to clear this up a number of years ago by editing the Wikipedia entry on Jerimoth hill. There has always been an access byway from Rt. 101. I have the original survey. I wish that I had known the issues that you all were going through sooner. Look to the lower right of this link for what has always been available to you.
    http://dl.lib.brown.edu/pdfs/1261009329812041.pdf

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