Part of Chesco farm to be preserved

Part of a former dairy farm in West Vincent Township is to be preserved as open space, the French and Pickering Creeks Conservation Trust announced Thursday.

Longtime township resident Theodora Heathcote and her four children donated a conservation easement on 36 acres of what was once a 170-acre family dairy operation, said a news release.

The scenic property, which is still leased for crop farming, sits at the intersection of two unpaved roads and features a spring-fed pond, adjacent wetlands and about 2 1/2 acres of woodland, the release said.

Since its establishment in 1967, the French and Pickering Creeks Conservation Trust has protected 9,000 acres in northern Chester County through purchases, conservation easements and public/private partnerships. For more information, visit http://www.frenchandpickering.org .

Kathleen Brady Shea