The Eno River Association (ERA) is excited to announce the newest conservation project along the Eno River. On August 14, the Reid family donated a conservation easement on a 2.5-acre riverfront portion of the historic Burnside Barn and Coachman’s Quarters property in Hillsborough. While modest in size, the land connects an existing protected Occaneechi site owned by The Archaeological Conservancy, which is, in turn, adjacent to the Occoneechee Speedway portion of Eno River State Park. “Adding to the protection of the Eno River corridor in the Hillsborough area is incredibly meaningful,” Chris Dreps, ERA’s Director of Conservation and Stewardship, explains. The property protects a diverse floodplain forest within the Hillsborough town limits.
Burnside Barn and Coachman’s Quarters is also an important historical site. Archeological artifacts recovered from UNC field studies since 1938 have shown that Occaneechi, Shakori, and earlier Indigenous groups lived in this area for thousands of years. More recently, the site was part of the Burnside estate owned by the Cameron and Ruffin families. Adjacent to the conservation easement stands the old coachman’s quarters where “Dec 5 ’65” was found hand-scribed into a brick wall — a reminder of the date that the coachman and others enslaved by the Ruffin and Cameron families learned they would be freed. December 4, 1865 was the date that North Carolina ratified the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, intending to abolish slavery in America. The Reid family and descendants of Jesse Ruffin (the coachman) and Rebecca (Norwood) Ruffin continue an annual celebration of emancipation at this location.
The Reid family shared, “Our parents, Gwen and Bill Reid, loved to protect the environment. This is their way of passing their love to future generations. To our delight, we celebrated this agreement on what would have been our mother’s 100th birthday.”
The conservation easement is a deed that prohibits any future development of the land in perpetuity, while allowing the Reid family and all future owners the right to enjoy the space in ways that are protective of the forest and the Eno River. The ERA is responsible for ensuring that all future landowners meet the requirements of the conservation easement.
