Sylvester Manor Educational Farm

The Farmstand is open till 4pm today and stocked with new items! Pot pies, whole roaster chickens, tofu, applesauce, chicken sausages and fresh eggs take a spot alongside our produce, baked goods and Sylvester Manor pork. Stop by and pick up all you need for a delicious winter meal!

Who isn't craving snacks and charcuterie? Sign up now for our Specialty Box for Week 2 of our Food Box program and you'll enjoy the famous Dizengoff hummus along with pita, fresh mozzarella, finocheitta and pepitas! It's also not too late to sign up for a 7 week share of produce and fruit. Order by Monday, January 18 at 11am to pick up your order on Saturday, January 23. Order online at www.sylvestermanor.org/food-boxes #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #shelterisland #winterproduce #foodbox #zone7 #eathealthy #meats #cheese #dizengoff #hummus

Director of Farm Operations Cristina Cosentino will be hosting a free online information session tonight and again on Thursday, February 4 from 6:00 - 7:00 pm. Join the call to ask the farmer any questions you may have about the CSA. The CSA program opens to everyone on January 15. Link on our website www.sylvestermanor.org/csa #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #csa #shelterisland #eatlocal #organic

3 hours left to order your winter produce and fruit box! Sign up now and receive a box full of fresh produce weekly for the next 8 weeks. Or, opt for the specialty box that changes each weekItalian feast is the focus this week...Mangia! Ordering closes at 11am today. Go to www.sylvestermanor.org/food-boxes to sign up.

The millwrights are back at it! Take a look at their progress on the blades and the new windshaft that will support the weight of the blades once they are installed. We also have a scale model of the final vision of the Windmill that was created by mechanical engineering students at #worchesterpolytechnicinstitute as part of their Major Qualifying Project. Completed in early 2020, the model will be used as an educational tool both on-site and in classrooms to teach students about the historic windmill and renewable energy generation. #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #windmill #shelterisland #windpower #wpi

Located in the back farm field at Sylvester Manor, behind the windmill, lies what appears to be a footprint in a large boulder. The footprint is of a right foot with the impression of the heel and instep deep and well formed in the stone. The legend of this stone, called The Devil’s Footprint, says that it was formed when an Evil Spirit left the island taking three long stridesthe first on Shelter Island, the second on Orient Point, and the third on Montauk, where it then... plunged into the sea. Having served his function, the devil disappeared, leaving only his footprints to remind us of his presence. The legend has been described as a tradition of Native People and similar tales are told throughout New England. They were also adapted and joined to European traditions and stories of heathen characters transformed into the stern Christian devil of the Middle Ages. Retold by New England Puritans and reflecting the Christianizing process that was occurring in both the Old and New Worlds, the stories substituted legends held by Indigenous People with Christian beliefs. #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #history #shelterisland #devilsfootprint #orientpoint #montauk #windmill

The third U.S. Presidential Election was held in 1796 and votes were cast from November 4th to December 7th. This significant election was the first presidential election in which political parties played a major role and it was the only election in which the President and Vice President came from different parties. It was also the first contested Presidential election in U.S. history! The Federalist party candidate, Incumbent Vice President John Adams defeated former Secret...ary of State Thomas Jefferson of the Democratic-Republican party. According to the rules at the time, each member of the Electoral College cast two votes with no distinction between votes for President and Vice President. The winners were determined by whoever won the majority of Electors. The campaign against Adams and the Federalists hinged on accusations that they favored monarchism and the aristocracy while the argument against Jefferson was his moral character and pro-France beliefs. Adams defeated Jefferson with a vote of 71 to 68 with nine other candidates also winning votes. New York Senator Aaron Burr, a Democratic-Republican, received 30 votes. A joint session of Congress counted and reported the Electoral College votes on February 8, 1797, with John Adams as President and Thomas Jefferson as Vice President. One day, after the 2016 Presidential election, we found a letter from Aaron Burr to Ezra L’Hommedieu, a Sylvester descendant, dated December 1796 in the Manor’s vault. The letter recounts the contested election and provides other news from Philadelphia and Congress, including an attempted bribery scandal of members of Congress, fundraising for the construction of Washington, D.C. as the Nation’s Capital and the recent treaty with Spain granting the U.S. navigational rights to the Mississippi River. Ezra L’Hommedieu and Burr were friends and Ezra often sided with Burr in disputes relating to Alexander Hamilton. Here at Sylvester Manor, we often say that the House gives up its secrets at the appropriate time. And that’s exactly what this letter is - a gift to all of us, showing the long arc of history and the many things it still has to teach us. #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #shelterisland #history #election #aaronburr #congress #washingtondc #hamilton

Farm with us in 2021! We are looking for apprentices who are interested in gaining hands-on experience in all aspects of vegetable production and livestock care. Visit for more details and application. #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #farmapprentice #shelterisland #longislandfarm #eastendfarm #learntofarm

The Farmstand is stocked with fun holiday gifts, carrots, kale, sweet potatoes, pork and more! Come shop for stocking stuffers, local body products, Shelter Island-Made candles from @bywayofthefarm , veggie ornaments, jams from @treiberfarms and more. We are open today and next Saturday, 12/19 from 10:00 am- 4:00 pm. There’s also a SALE on select pork items like jowels, bacon ends, trotters. We are fully stocked on pork roasts, sausages, chops, and bacon for all your holiday cooking needs.

Sign up now for our Winter Produce & Food Box program and stick to your resolution to eat healthier in 2021 ! The 8-week program runs from Jan 16-Mar 6 and provides a weekly delivery of a variety of produce and fruit. Week 1 includes squash, carrots, onions, peppers, lettuce, potatoes, oranges and apples. There is also a weekly Specialty Box that is meal-focused and will vary week to week. This week has all the food needed for an Italian feast-fresh pasta, marinara sauce..., garlic, bread and butter! Sign up closes Monday, January 11 at 11am. Visit www.sylvestermanor.org/food-boxes for more details and to sign up. #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare ##zone7 #foodbox #freshproduce #eathealthy

The Farmstand is open today and every Saturday in January from 10am - 4pm. We have carrots, baby radicchio and kale from the Windmill Field and our own Sylvester Manor pork. You will also find watermelon radish, daikon, leeks and eggs from The H.O.G. Farm (Brookhaven, NY); soup, cookies and pound cakes from Ali Katz; NY state cheeses and apples. And try bread from our new partner, from Hampton Sourdough. #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #eatlocal #shelterisland

The Farmstand will be open tomorrow, Saturday, December 12 from 10am - 4pm. We'll have carrots, kale, sweet potatoes, cabbage and greens from the Windmill Field along with Sylvester Manor pork, winter squash from Balsam Farms, a variety of cheeses, candles, and more from our local partners! #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #shelterisland #eatlocal #growlocal #eastendfarm #longislandfarm #winterproduce

Today, Jim Kricker and his team carefully removed the old windshaft that was installed during the 1952 renovation by Andrew Fiske (10th generation Sylvester Manor descendent). The team is now preparing the space to receive a new neck bearing. A new windshaft will be installed sometime late next week that will support the weight of the blades. #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #shelterisland #history #windmill #dominy #restoration #longislandwindmill #eastend #preservation

All of our trails are closed for the entire month of January as part of the town-wide nuisance shotgun hunting program. Please respect the hunters and this Island tradition and do not walk the trails this month. Thank you for your cooperation. #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #shelterisland #shelterislandtrailclub

Our attention this week at Sylvester Manor has turned with excitement to the arrival of the millwrights who will be installing a new windshaft and blades on our 1810 windmill over the next few weeks. The Manor’s association with the windmill began in 1879 when Lilian Horsford purchased the mill, which at that time stood in the center of Shelter Island at the site of the present library. Production at the mill had ceased by this time and Lilian wanted to make sure it was pres...erved. With food shortages during WWI, the mill was used once again by the Town to grind wheat for flour and in 1919 Lilian sold it to her younger sister Cornelia for $1. It was moved to the Sylvester farm field in 1926 (where it stands today) and over the years Cornelia made several paintings of the windmill which are still on display in the Manor house. In 1952, Manor proprietor Andrew Fiske undertook a major renovation, which included replacing the shingles and blades, and later sold tickets for tours of the inside mechanisms of the mill. It became damaged in a hurricane in the 1960’s and the blades were removed. After nearly 60 years, the blades will once again be going up, and its our goal to make fully operational in 2021! #sylvestermanor #sylvestermanoreducationalfarm #preservecultivateshare #shelterisland #history #windmill #dominy #restoration #longislandwindmill #eastend