In 1964, a couple bought 535 acres in North Carolina and built a summer home there; decades later, they donated the entire property to Great Smoky Mountains National Park in its largest land gift since the park was created
The Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center A high-altitude property first bought as a private family retreat in the mid-1960s now serves as an important centre for environmental research in North America. The 535-acre property in Haywood County,…
In 1995, Clint Eastwood sold a large California property for $3.08 million; the land was placed under permanent conservation protection instead of being developed
In 1995, actor and filmmaker Clint Eastwood sold roughly 280 acres of his California coastal property to Monterey County for $3.08 million, helping ensure that a large stretch of scenic land would remain undeveloped. The property, associated with…
A man bought 51,000 acres of degraded land in Florida; decades later, it became the largest private restoration project east of the Mississippi
He is 85, known as the father of sociobiology, has been at Harvard for 60 years, and has won a hundred scientific awards, including two Pulitzer Prizes. Yet what E.O. Wilson, an evolutionary biologist, is focused on is a new conservation approach, a new…
A New Jersey town agreed to spend $13.4 million to preserve about 50 acres once eyed for dense housing; the first 17 acres have now become public land
Denville Township in Morris County, New Jersey, has completed the purchase of a 17-acre parcel, beginning a $13.4 million land preservation project that will permanently protect about 50 acres that had once been considered for dense housing development.…
In 1934, Black cave guide Matt Bransford sold his 14-room Mammoth Cave hotel and land for just $3,000, far below market value; the family then moved 20 miles away as the national park took shape
Matt Bransford and a glimpse of Mammoth Cave National Park Deep below the forests of Kentucky is a world of water, stone and centuries-old human history. Mammoth Cave National Park has the world’s longest known cave system, but its story is about far…
In 2024, a developer paid $4 million for 83 acres outside Yosemite; two years later the US is considering a land swap for a private access road through the park
The National Park Service is examining whether a land exchange can be carried out under federal law A Nevada-based developer is seeking a land exchange that could allow a private road to be built through Yosemite National Park, giving access to an…
In 2005, a couple bought a 2,300-acre Napa ranch for $8 million; after a 17-year battle over plans for vineyards, the land was bought for $24 million and is becoming a public preserve
2,300-Acre Napa Ranch Bought for $24M After 17-Year Vineyard Battle For years the fate of a large swath of Napa Valley wilderness has been tied up in competing visions: neat rows of vineyards or a continuous landscape for wildlife to roam. Now, after a…
A 324-million-year-old fossil from Texas preserves an early insect with 24 legs and paddle-like limbs on its abdomen, suggesting insects did not leave water for land in one sudden evolutionary jump
Palaeoecological reconstruction of the Carboniferous stem-insect Chosha praecursor. (Image by NIGPAS) An international research team has identified a remarkable insect fossil from western Texas that could represent a crucial missing link in the story of…
A Houston lawyer bought a 15,000-sq-ft mansion listed for $15.5 million just to demolish it; he plans to donate about $4 million of its materials and turn the land into a garden
Houston attorney Tony Buzbee and his wife, Frances, recently acquired 1708 River Oaks Blvd Prominent Houston trial lawyer Tony Buzbee has bought a 15,000-square-foot luxury mansion listed for $15.5 million in the exclusive River Oaks neighbourhood, with…
Florida couple declared dead in helicopter crash in Kenya; thieves break in their house, steal Porsche, Land Rover in less than 24 hours. Then comes a twist in court
A Florida couple killed in Kenya in a helicopter crash during safari. Within 24 hours, thieves broke in and ransacked their house 55-year-old Henry Parra and 42-year-old Adam Hlavaty, a same-sex couple from Florida, were among the seven people who were…