Piscataway Park, Maryland

Piscataway Park is the opposite side of the Potomac River as Mount Vernon.  In the mid 1950s, the land across from Mount Vernon was coming under the eye of developers and even a sewage treatment plant. Congresswoman Frances Payne Bolton of Ohio, a member of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, purchased a 500-acre farm directly across the Potomac from Mount Vernon. After her death the park was donated to the Accokeek Foundation.  Today, the Accokeek Foundation tends to 200 acres of Piscataway Park. The whole park is approximately 5,000 acres, from Piscataway Creek to Marshall Hall on the Potomac River. Included in the park is the National Colonial Farm established in 1958.  The farm demonstrates 18^th century agriculture by preserving rare breeds of animals and crops. Some of the animals are the Milking Devon cattle, the Hog Island Sheep, and Ossabaw hogs. We got to see the hogs that Owen loved.  They are said to have been brought by the Spanish during early settlement. Maybe that is why Owen felt such a connection; fellow Spaniards. Much of the hog’s history was spent on an isolated island so the genetic representation is fairly close to the original stock. This island was a challenging environment of high heat, humidity, and scarce food. As a result they store lots of body fat and with this biochemical adaptation is similar to non-insulin-dependent diabetes in humans. These animals are the best natural animal model for this type of diabetes.