A Visit to Green Meadows: Rich History and Living Legacy Flourish Side by Side

The trees were greening and the forsythia bushes a splash of yellow as I made my way down a Massachusetts country road to visit Green Meadows Farm.

Major George S. Patton Jr. and his wife Beatrice bought the 250 acre property in 1928 as a home “in between stations.” The Pattons lived here only occasionally until World War II, when Beatrice took up residence, expecting to welcome her husband home from the war, to retirement. An untimely car accident caused General Patton’s death in 1945, so he was never in extended residence.

Mrs. Patton lived here until her death in the hunting field in 1953. Her funeral took place at Green Meadows and her ashes were planted under the tree by a cannon in the back yard.

On his retirement after 34 years as a career Army officer, George Patton and his wife Joanne Holbrook Patton, and their family moved to the farm in 1980.

The centuries old farm was originally prized for its superb hunting. It is now a certified organic farm, which maintains a Community Supported Agriculture program of 200 member families. A small, committed staff assist in running the farm operation and a winter firewood business.

The first glimpse of the farm is of the farm stand that faces the road. During the summer and fall, families visit the stand to partake of the some 200 varieties of produce grown here. Beyond the farm stand, rolling hills are dotted with blueberry bushes, a bustling chicken coop and fields ready to burst forth.

Down the road, the rambling farmhouse looks like so many others, but the mat on the front doorstep reads The Pattons. Inside the house, under the warm care of Joanne Patton, is a treasure trove of family memorabilia that documents military achievements and strong family ties. The most surprising aspect of the house is its normalcy, from the artwork of grandchildren hanging on the kitchen cabinets to the walls of portraits and pictures celebrating births and weddings and family events.

The central part of the home, containing the living room, dates to 1786. The living room is home to several portraits done by Donald Squier, including stunning renditions of both Joanne Holbrook Patton and Beatrice Ayer Patton. In one corner a brightly colored watercolor, painted by George and Joanne’s son, George S. Patton, Jr., an artist and competitive western rider, is on display.

A gun room off of the living room holds weapons and artifacts from the various military campaigns fought by father and son. Framed medals and photographs with world leaders recall great battles, but no sight is quite as chilling as the warriors’ helmets perched on a beam above the room.

On a lighter note, one corner holds cups made from oil cans. The cups were used by officers to partake of “armored diesel,” a pungent cocktail of Scotch, wine and bourbon mixed by George S. Patton Jr. and served at his farewell party upon leaving Fort Benning.

A library was built onto the house by Patton before World War II. Designed to be an office wing after retirement, the shelves are still lined with volumes of military history, though many of his books were donated to West Point. On the walls of Patton’s wood paneled library over the fireplace is a working sketch of the general done by Boleslaw Jan Czedekowski. The formal portrait of the General was completed in 1945 and now hangs in the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery WWII exhibit, a gift of the Patton Family. Austrian born Czedekowski is said to have promised to paint commanders’ portraits in exchange for his paints and his meals, in order to re-make his reputation. His venture was a success.

The window sills hold two model ships built by George S. Patton Jr., an avid sailor, between the wars. A framed newspaper article documents the family’s trip home from Hawaii on a 50-foot yacht. Deep drawers below the bookcase hold rocks and shells, finds of Beatrice Patton on her journeys from post to post.

The general’s desk sits quietly idle in the room. A nearby closet holds large bound books, including books containing the thousands of letters of condolence Joanne Patton received when her husband passed away.

Upstairs, past walls of photos, lies the small brides’ room. On one wall framed photos show Ellen Barrows Banning, her daughter Beatrice Ayer, granddaughters Ruth Ellen and Bee Patton, and her great granddaughter Beatrice Totten wearing the wedding dress originally worn by Ellen for her wedding to Frederick Ayer in 1884. Walls of photos and stacks of albums honor all the family’s brides.

The courtship of Ellen Banning and Fredrick Ayer is legendary within the family. It is said that she declined a date with Mr. Ayer to see the actor Edwin Booth play Hamlet. When she came out of the theater, Mr. Ayer was waiting with a carriage and horse. He noted that since she had the good sense to pick the theater over a date with him she should have the privilege of both. Their romance flourished. Frederick Ayer is said to have given his bride a flower every day of her life.

Joanne recounted that when Ruth Ellen’s daughter Beatrice was to get married on the grounds of Green Meadows Ruth Ellen announced to the world and God that she was going to have the flowers up by the first week of May. “The flowers bloomed. Even God listened to Ruth Ellen,” said Joanne.

The house is not the only place of history. The fields of Green Meadows were named by George Smith Patton for the men who died under his command, including two Medal of Honor recipients. Those fields team with life – the green shoots of produce growing and the tender care of member families who cultivate the fields. On summer weekends the farm is the site of numerous outings and there are two annual farm festivals.

Touring the grounds with Joanne, we came across a mother and her four children mulching and weeding the blueberry bushes as part of a group of students from Miles River School working the farm for a community service project.

It was under George Smith Patton’s tutelage, with the help of agricultural, environmental, and forestry experts and the advice of seasoned farmers, that the farm grew and earned certified organic farm status.

“My husband had known the farm as a playground of the privileged where the hunt took place, but he grew into his times. He said he wanted it to be productive and a community asset and resource,” noted Joanne.

“You can see the families visiting the farm stand as a family and going out into the fields as a family. You can see kids discovering what it is like to grow something and eat it. It allows them to be adventurous in eating,” described Joanne.

A cannon lies just off a brick patio in the back of the house keeping watch on the fields and ponds. The cannon was sent home by General Patton’s staff after it had washed up on the beaches of Morocco. “We imagine Mrs. Patton heard from Railway Express that she had a parcel but she would have to bring six men, a truck and a fork lift to get it,” said Joanne.

A family home, site of a wedding and a funeral, a place of leisure and a working farm, Green Meadows has evolved through time and will continue to change with the times.

“While it is a private family home, I don't imagine it will remain a single family home forever,” observed Joanne, “It could be a retreat center, a research center. It has an exciting future.”

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Building a Master Plan: Inside the Work of PGAV

Doubtless many of you are waiting with great anticipation for a glimpse of what the future will hold for The Patton Museum. As announced in the last issue of The Patton Saber, the firm of Peckham, Guyton, Albers and Viet, Inc. has been hired to devise a master plan that will guide the development of the museum. In this issue, they offer us a glimpse into the master planning process.

PGAV begins the process by immersing themselves in history. “There are a lot of places we tap into for inspiration. To start with there is a lot of reading that goes on,” said Mike Konzen, vice president of PGAV. Their reading list for the Patton Museum includes The Button Box by Ruth Ellen Patton Totten, The Soul of Battle by Victor Davis Hanson, and The Patton Papers by Martin Blumenson.

“What we ultimately want to convey is the living legacy; what it means to be a modern mounted soldier in terms of training and commitment. Patton’s history is embodied in the men and women who live this legacy today. That means this history is relevant to a wide range of people,” noted Konzen.

The master planning team is also working to immerse themselves in the esprit d’corps and daily concerns of modern cavalry and armor. This has included getting input from Major General Robert M. Williams, commanding general of the US Army Armor Center at Fort Knox, Colonel Robert Valdivia, who oversees the museum, and personnel at the US Army Armor School.

Konzen said PGAV’s work is guided by the questions ‘Who are we trying to reach?’ and ‘How do we want them to feel about this experience?’

“We want to appeal broader audience than might be associated with the traditional military experience, and we want to convey to them this sense of audacious leadership that was part of the way Patton lived. This kind of leadership is applicable whether you are leading a family, a business or trying to figure out some aspect of your own life,” explained Konzen. Three key elements are emerging from the master planning process: the history of the Patton family; the concept of army values; and lessons from the history of cavalry and armor.

“We will take this sort of a framework and begin to imagine the different kinds of experiences visitors can have. We will begin to focus on what they can see, hear and touch,” said Konzen.

The firm is developing a long list of potential experiences and beginning to think about how they might be organized within the museum. For example, one approach might be to have a linear organization that could proceed chronologically through history. Another approach might be to organize things conceptually with areas that convey different ideas related to Patton and the legacy of armored warfare.

“The most challenging part of it all is that we have to become deeply engaged in the subject matter, but at the same time we have to be able to step back and figure out how to make this appealing to someone who knows nothing about the subject,” said Konzen.

Later this spring, PGAV will convene focus groups of eight to ten people to present ideas and get public feedback. Participants will have diverse backgrounds and come from three different “feeder markets” or areas that contain groups that will be interested in visiting the museum. PGAV will get feedback from six groups from three different feeder markets.

“We are excited to get their thoughts on possible approaches,” said Konzen.

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Those Marvelous Fighting Machines: A Visit to Pony Tracks Ranch

The Patton Museum Expansion Planning Committee recently toured Jacques Littlefield’s 470-acre Pony Tracks Ranch. This look at his unparalleled collection and meticulous restoration is an inspiration for anyone interested in preserving these great fighting machines!

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