Who was Francis Foster? This man we named our restaurant for.
Francis Foster bought this property in 1915, when the property boasted 600 acres that included both Seth’s Pond and Old House (Ice House) Pond. He lived here until he died in 1966.
Excerpts From the Vineyard Gazette January 9, 1926 in a column titled, “Interesting Vineyarders” describing Foster and the property:
“Some day in the dim and far-off future, a tablet or monument will be erected to the memory of Francis A. Foster, the first Vineyarder, and the only one up to date, who has foreseen the day when there will be a lack of unspoiled wilderness for the public to enjoy, and who has made provisions against that contingency to an extent which should warrant the preservation of his name in the public memory.”
“Birds by the thousands congregate here, to nest or to seek food and shelter during the winter months. Food in plenty is provided for them at various stations which they frequent, and they are so tame that they will alight on the heads and shoulders of Mr. Foster and his men who replenish the supply.”
“I have always detested the city,” says Mr. Foster, “and longed for the open spaces… I have traveled more or less, but I have found no place that can compare with Martha’s Vineyard. There is every natural attraction here that anyone could wish for, and a personal freedom I have never found anywhere else. I am perfectly happy and contented, a Vineyarder to the backbone, and nothing short of dynamite could dislodge me from the island.”
Foster had the first landing pad on the island,
built in 1937. Local Vineyarder, Freddie Fischer, was
dropping off compost for our raised bed farmette last year, and he said, things have really changed around here; I
remember when Francis Foster's orchard and landing pad used be back here.
Foster was a collector of rare irises. One of the
gardeners at Whipporwill and North Tisbury Farm, where we tend a plot, told me she'd gardened at the inn in the 1990s
and had uncovered rare irises amidst what had become an overgrown garden. Apparently Foster flew around the world to collect rare irises and brought rhizomes back to plant on his Vineyard Estate. She said, "I could feel that man's love when I was in the gardens.
Foster installed an early version of in-ground
irrigation. Gardening at the inn is always full of surprises
and discoveries. When I first started gardening here, I kept Foster installed an early version of in-ground
irrigation. Gardening at the inn is always full of surprises
and discoveries. When I first started gardening here, I kept r a gardener, but apparently back in Foster's day they had According to our gardening friend at North Tisbury, Foster installed leading edge in-ground irrigation to support his
gardens.