Skitapet Conservation Area

The Skitapet name was fashioned from the opening letters of the original 1954 pioneer families’ last names—Skinner, Taplin, and Peterson.

The 17 modern day pioneers have moved on, but they left a permanent legacy to the people of Groton, thanks to generous gifts of conservation land from both the Taplins and the Skinners, more than 250 acres in all. Over the years both John Taplin and Joe Skinner purchased land beyond the original 102 acres and have donated it, in several parcels, to the Groton Conservation Trust. Joe and Jeanne Skinner donated 51 acres they called Skitapet Conservation Land as a tribute to the three pioneer families. After Joe died in 1985, John and Ginny Taplin donated 128 acres of woodlands to be known as Skinner Forest in Joe’s memory. The Taplins also contributed land to the Lost Lake Recreation Area, the Duck Pond Conservation Area, and the Whitney Well Site (under the jurisdiction of the Groton Water Commission), and established the Taplin Wildlife Sanctuary at the edge of Whitney Pond where it meets Lowell Road. The love of the land that brought the Skitapet pioneers to Groton in 1954 lives on through their generosity to the people of Groton, enabling others to get close to nature the way they and their families did fifty years ago.

Source: Modern-Day Pioneers in Groton by C. David Gordon, GHS Vice President