Glennie Woodlot

The Town of North Andover owns and manages this property, while Greenbelt holds a conservation restriction on the 9-acre Glennie Woodlot, which includes the parking area and trailhead. This historic site is the last remaining piece of the Glennie Dairy, much of which is now permanently protected as Smolak Farm. Nestled within a critical watershed, the woodlot’s groundwater feeds Lake Cochichewick, which flows into the Merrimack River.

Historically, the area was used by the Pawtucket village of Cochichewicket (“At the fast-running stream”), whose villagers likely hunted in the Glennie forest. Today, a well-established woods road serves as a trail, connecting the property to the northern portion of the Town Farm Conservation Area.

The conservation of the Glennie Woodlot property opened an important gateway to the Town Farm North property. For years, trails to this part of the conservation area were blocked by persistent flooding, making this new connection especially meaningful for the community.

Protection of this land was made possible through the generosity of many donors and the support of North Andover residents, who approved the use of CPA funds for the purchase. The Town of North Andover now owns the Glennie Woodlot, ensuring its permanent protection for conservation, wildlife habitat, and recreation. 

A dense understory of highbush blueberry makes this Oak-Pine Forest particularly striking. The canopy features oak, white pine, yellow birch, red maple, and shagbark hickory, while mapleleaf viburnum and sassafras add richness to the forest floor.

The property hosts a twelve-nest great blue heron rookery atop tall dead trees rising from a beaver-built pond. The pond also provides habitat for wood ducks and red-winged blackbirds, while the surrounding forest is alive with tufted titmouse, American robin, and black-capped chickadee.