Massachusetts Audubon Society

Massachusetts Audubon Society

Oak Knoll visitor center in Attleboro, Massachusetts
Formation	1896
Type	Non-profit organization
Purpose	Protecting the nature of Massachusetts
Headquarters	Lincoln, Massachusetts
Coordinates	42°24′36″N 71°19′55″W / 42.409866°N 71.331850°W / 42.409866; -71.331850
Region served	Massachusetts
President	Gary Clayton
Main organ	Board of Directors
Website	www.massaudubon.org

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (Mass Audubon), founded in 1896 by Harriet Hemenway and Minna Hall, headquartered in Lincoln, Massachusetts, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to "protecting the nature of Massachusetts". Mass Audubon is independent of the National Audubon Society, and was founded earlier. Mass Audubon protects 36,500 acres of land throughout Massachusetts, saving birds and other wildlife, and making nature accessible to all with its wildlife sanctuaries and 20 nature centers.

History

The Massachusetts Audubon Society (or Mass Audubon) was born out of Harriet Hemenway's desire to stop the commercial slaughter of birds for women's ornamental hats. Hemenway and her cousin, Minna Hall, soon enlisted 900 women and formed a partnership with many from Boston's scientific community to form their organization. They named the organization the Massachusetts Audubon Society in honor of the bird painter John James Audubon. In 1905, a national committee of Audubon societies was developed. This committee was vital in passing the Migratory Bird Conservation Act in 1913 and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 with Great Britain. The passage of these measures effectively eliminated the commercial plume trade.^[1]

Mass Audubon’s first wildlife sanctuary, Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary in Sharon, Massachusetts, dates back to 1916 when the board accepts an offer of Sharon resident George Field to use his property as a bird sanctuary. Mass Audubon purchased the parcel in 1922.^[1]

Wildlife sanctuaries

Gordon Hall in Lincoln, Massachusetts

Mass Audubon's statewide network of wildlife sanctuaries welcomes visitors of all ages and is a home for more than 150 endangered and threatened native species.

• Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary, Westport
• Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary, Easthampton
• Blue Hills Trailside Museum, Milton
• Boston Nature Center, Mattapan
• Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center and Wildlife Sanctuary, Worcester
• Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary, Natick
• Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary, Marshfield
• Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary, Lincoln
• Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, Edgartown
• Habitat Education Center and Wildlife Sanctuary, Belmont
• High Ledges Wildlife Sanctuary, Shelburne
• Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary, Topsfield
• Joppa Flats Education Center
• Long Pasture Wildlife Sanctuary, Barnstable
• Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary, Sharon
• North River Wildlife Sanctuary, Marshfield
• Oak Knoll Wildlife Sanctuary, Attleboro
• Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Lenox
• Stony Brook Wildlife Sanctuary, Norfolk
• Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary, Princeton
• Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, South Wellfleet
• Mass Audubon Museum of American Bird Art, Canton

References

External links

• Massachusetts Audubon Society
• Sanctuary magazine, published by the Massachusetts Audubon Society

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