Dwellers in Arcady: The Story of an Abandoned Farm

In Short

Albert Bigelow Paine’s Dwellers in Arcady: The Story of an Abandoned Farm is a lighthearted memoir of back-to-the-land life at the dawn of the twentieth century. Driven by a lifelong dream of owning a stream, an urban narrator buys a rundown, two-century-old estate in Connecticut. Alongside his wife and young children, he unearths local antiquities, paper-hangs crooked walls, battles swarms of chimney bees, and attempts small-scale agriculture with mixed success. It endures as a charming time capsule of American country life, capturing the quiet beauty, comedy, and ultimate transience of domestic happiness.

The Story

The journey begins when a broken harness forces a city-dwelling narrator and his family to pause near an abandoned farm in Brook Ridge, Connecticut. Captivated by the property and its running brook, the narrator buys the house and its surrounding acreage for nine hundred dollars from a local landowner, William C. Westbury. Shortly after the purchase, the narrator meets "old Nat," a eccentric neighbor whose family has farmed the region for generations, who assures him that the purchase price was fair.

Restoring the dilapidated homestead proves to be a massive but joy-filled undertaking. Guided by Westbury, the narrator recruits local laborers, including an old Civil War veteran named Pop to build stone walls and a stylish young farmer named Luther Merrill to plow the rocky soil. A formal "board of appraisal" made up of older neighbors gathers in the cellar to inspect leftover barrels, while the family explores the attic, uncovering layers of regional history: antique rope bedsteads, old iron cookware, and a primitive wooden mortar used by early settlers to grind corn.

As the seasons turn, the family throws themselves into rural tasks. The narrator papers uneven walls while ducking swarms of honeybees that have taken over the chimney. Together, they gather bushels of wild grapes to make jams and wine, set up an ill-fated pigpen for two piglets named Hans and Gretel, and adopt a stray Irish laborer named William Deegan, whose initial sluggishness vanishes into furious wood-chopping after a cup of coffee and a nap. They receive a former family horse named Lord Beaconsfield, drive him through autumn snows, and cut down wild cedar trees from the hillside to celebrate Christmas around an ancestral tinsel ornament.

Spring brings ambitious gardening projects, inspired by seed catalogues promising exotic melons and salad greens. The narrator spends quiet June mornings creeping along the clear stream to catch wild trout for breakfast, while Westbury and his men harvest rye, beating flails against the barn floor in time-honored fashion.

Eventually, the passage of time takes its toll on the idyllic retreat. The eldest daughter, nicknamed the Pride, marries and leaves the farm; the younger children grow up and move away to summer camps, and one daughter sails for France as a soldier during World War I. Realizing their quiet home has served its purpose, the narrator and his wife sell the farm to a young newlywed couple. Leaving the property forever, the narrator finds a single white canterbury-bell blooming where he had planted seeds years before—a quiet final farewell to their twelve-year sanctuary.

How It Unfolds

The voyage begins A chance breakdown along a country road leads the narrator to discover an abandoned, overgrown farm with a running brook. Intrigued by the property's rustic charm, he buys the entire homestead for nine hundred dollars.

Uncovering the past The family moves in and begins clearing out centuries of forgotten household goods from the cellar and attic. Neighboring elders gather to inspect ancient cider barrels, while the narrator unearths colonial hand-mills, iron pots, and historic account books.

Settling into the soil Daily life becomes a series of practical experiments, from papering irregular walls amidst swarms of disoriented bees to harvesting wild roadside grapes. Local color enters in the form of Pop the wall-builder, Luther Merrill the plowman, and William Deegan, a hired hand with an endless capacity for hard labor.

The cycle of seasons Winter brings cold winds through the uninsulated siding, prompt repairs, and a magical Christmas centered around a wild cedar cut from the nearby hillside. Come summer, the narrator spends early mornings trout fishing along the bank and attempting to grow sweet potatoes and melons.

The final farewell As the years pass, the children grow up and leave the farm to start their own lives or serve overseas. Recognizing that their time on the land has come to a natural close, the parents sell the property to a new generation, leaving behind twelve years of memories.

The People

• The Narrator: A city man driven by a lifelong desire to own a running stream. He approaches farm labor with self-deprecating humor, learning to paper walls, clear brush, and fish for trout while taking pride in his family's new rural lifestyle.
• Elizabeth: The narrator's practical, steady wife. She manages the household, preserves wild fruit, selects garden seeds for fresh salads, and works alongside her husband to turn the decaying house into a warm home.
• William C. Westbury: A descendant of the area's original settlers and the land's former owner. Wise, generous, and deeply knowledgeable about local history, he acts as an indispensable advisor, carpenter, and master of ceremonies for the family's farm projects.
• Old Nat: A timid, pale neighbor who walks with a limp and startles the narrator on his first night at the farm. He serves as an informal guardian of local traditions and an expert on the contents of old New England cellars.
• William Deegan: A gaunt, itinerant Irish laborer who arrives looking like a "burglar on sick-leave." After a hot meal and a brief nap in the hay, he transforms into a powerhouse of wood-chopping and weeding.

In Its Own Voice

"I enjoyed the richest luxury in the world--that of bathing in the open air, sheltered only by the sky and the greenery, in one's own brook and one's own door-yard."

(The narrator discovers the simple joy of swimming in his stream after a summer rain.)

"Matters did not go so well in the living-room. It was not because the old walls were more irregular there than elsewhere--I could negotiate that--it was those pesky bees."

(The narrator struggles to paste wallpaper on an uneven ceiling while surrounded by homeless honeybees.)

"The farm-dweller who does not plant an asparagus-bed as quickly as he can get the ground ready, and the plants for it, makes a grave mistake."

(Reflecting on the unexpected agricultural successes that rewarded their early hard work.)

What It's Really About

At its heart, the book explores the quiet urge to escape urban congestion and reconnect with the land. It argues that true wealth lies not in luxury, but in physical labor, natural beauty, and domestic self-reliance. By unearthing colonial artifacts and working side-by-side with descendants of the original founders, the family bridges the gap between past and present. The book also meditates on the inevitable passage of time; the farm is never truly owned, but merely borrowed for a season of raising children before being passed along to the next generation of dreamers.

Why Read It Today

Dwellers in Arcady will appeal to anyone who dreams of leaving city life behind to restore an old house or cultivate a garden. Reading it feels like sitting on a wide front porch on a warm afternoon, listening to an affectionate, witty friend recount the triumphs and minor disasters of country life.

The prose moves at a relaxed, unhurried pace, favoring quiet observations over dramatic conflict. Readers should be prepared for its early twentieth-century setting, which includes occasional period dialect from local tradesmen and minor romanticized depictions of rural labor. Yet its core themes remain fresh and relatable. Paine captures the universal thrill of discovering a hidden antique in a dark attic, the satisfaction of eating a meal grown by one's own hands, and the gentle melancholy of watching a beloved home grow quiet after the children have moved away. It offers a gentle, refreshing reminder of what it means to make a home.