Shelburne Farms
A model agricultural estate became a nonprofit center for sustainability education
Artwork inspired by Thomas Waterman Wood
A model agricultural estate became a nonprofit center for sustainability education The 1,400-acre working farm combines a monumental Farm Barn, dairy, forest, trails, lake shore, education programs, and a seasonal inn. Frederick Law Olmsted’s landscape planning and the Webbs’ Gilded Age resources remain visible, but current work focuses on food systems and ecological learning.
Choose a farm program or walking route in advance; distances between the Welcome Center, Farm Barn, and lake are substantial. Access, shuttles, programs, and buildings change by season; this is a working farm, not an unrestricted historic estate. The strongest visit connects designed beauty to the ongoing labor of land stewardship.
- Area
- 1,400 acres
- Design
- Frederick Law Olmsted
- Mission
- Sustainability education
Quick guide
- Orient at arrival
- The 1,400-acre property is larger than it appears.
- Reach the Farm Barn
- Architecture and current education share the space.
Know before you go
- Orient at arrival
- The 1,400-acre property is larger than it appears.
- Reach the Farm Barn
- Architecture and current education share the space.
- Follow the food system
- Dairy, pasture, forest, and kitchen connect.
- Respect the work
- Farm operations determine where visitors may go.
Good to know
Access, shuttles, programs, and buildings change by season; this is a working farm, not an unrestricted historic estate.
Notice these
- Farm Barn
- pastures
- Lake Champlain shore