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The Lodge on its point in Woods Mill Pond, its lawn running to the water, from above
The Estate

Lakefalls

The 1927 Lodge on Woods Mill Pond, and 250 acres of Monadnock woods around it

The place

A family estate on Woods Mill Pond

Lakefalls sits at the southern edge of New Hampshire's Monadnock region, twenty minutes from Keene and two hours from Boston. The estate was built in 1927 and runs along the length of Woods Mill Pond, with Otter Brook winding through the property. Beyond the 250 acres of Lakefalls itself, 13,000 acres of permanent conservation land extend the privacy of the place into something closer to wilderness.

Lakefalls is a family estate, and the family lives here. The Healys have restored it since 1990, and they open it for a small number of weddings, for groups, and for guests in its six houses.

The Lodge Lawn and the Walled Garden from above
From above
The covered bridge and its red roof at the head of the pond
The Covered Bridge
The stone powerhouse and its waterwheel on Otter Brook
The powerhouse
The Walled Garden lawn with the pond beyond
The Walled Garden
Chandler Meadow, the marsh at the north end
Chandler Meadow
The pond and the estate among the trees
Woods Mill Pond
The estate and the pond among the forested hills of the Monadnock region
Something closer to wilderness13,000 acres of permanent conservation land
Powered by the sun

The estate runs on its own power

Two solar arrays generate far more electricity than Lakefalls uses across a year, so the lights over your reception, the kitchen your caterer works in, and the six houses your family sleeps in all run on sun the property collected itself.

2Solar arrays
MoreThan the estate uses
Through the year

Four seasons on the pond

Woods Mill Pond still and blue in spring, the hills behind

Spring

The ice goes out, the brook runs high below the falls, and the lawns come back green. Weddings begin in May.

The Lodge Lawn and its chairs above the pond in spring
The Lodge seen through a stone arch in spring
The Walled Garden lawn in summer, the pond beyond

Summer

Canoes at the docks and swimming off the lawns. The Lodge porch is the coolest place on the estate.

The Lodge across the pond under a summer sky
The covered bridge at the head of the pond in summer, from above
Two Adirondack chairs on the shore in peak fall color

Fall

September and October bring the foliage, the most sought-after weeks of the year.

A bench in the maples in October
The path along the pond toward the covered bridge in fall
The Lodge across the frozen pond at sunset

Winter

The pond freezes, the woods go quiet, and the houses with radiant floor heat stay warm through it.

Frost on the trees above the falls
The covered bridge in snow
Grounds and landmarks

Walk the estate

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Lakefalls Lodge across the pond in October01

Lakefalls Lodge

The 1927 Lodge on its point in the pond, the Great Room and six bedrooms.

Accommodation
The Walled Garden arches with the pond behind02

The Walled Garden

Stone walls, arches and the turret the Healys rebuilt, over the pond.

Ceremony space
The waterfall pouring over the dam between two millstones03

The Waterfall

The falls that gave the estate its name, framed by millstones from the 1785 gristmill.

Ceremony space
Otter Brook running through fall color below the falls04

Otter Brook

The brook begins at the falls and winds through the property toward the old mill sites.

Landmark
The stone powerhouse with its waterwheel beside the brook05

The Powerhouse

Florence Brooks Aten's stone powerhouse, with its waterwheel on the brook.

Landmark
The covered bridge with its red roof in fall06

The Covered Bridge

At the head of the pond, where the water narrows toward Chandler Meadow. A favorite for first looks.

Landmark
The Barn, its timber front and tall windows07

The Barn

The reception hall, seating 150 on the first floor.

Reception
Tables on the Lodge deck and the lawn beyond08

The Lodge Lawn

The open green between the Lodge and the water.

Ceremony space
Chandler Meadow, the long marsh at the north end, from the air09

Chandler Meadow

The marsh beyond the bridge, with moose, beavers, otters, blue herons and bald eagles.

Wildlife
The first cabin among the pines, about 191810

Shinbone Shack

The first cabin of Woods Mill Manor, named for the moose bones in its hearth.

Heritage
Boulder House, timber framing over a wall of granite boulders11

The six houses

From the Lodge to Boulder House, sleeping 34 across the estate.

Accommodations
The pond and the forest beyond from the air12

The conservation land

13,000 acres of permanent conservation land beyond the estate's own 250.

The woods
The marsh and its channels winding north from the pond, from the air
The land next door

Thirteen thousand acres, kept wild

The estate borders 13,000 acres of permanent conservation land. From the north end, past the Covered Bridge, the marsh of Chandler Meadow opens out and the wildlife comes and goes.

  • Moose
  • Beavers
  • Otters
  • Blue herons
  • Bald eagles
A great blue heron in the marsh grass
A heron in the marsh
Chandler Meadow from above, the marsh opening north
Chandler Meadow
Two paddlers crossing the marsh in October
Paddling the marsh
The marsh and the forested hills beyond, from above
Forest to the horizon
After dark

The estate at night

The Lodge lit up across the pond at nightStars over the fallsThe Barn lit at nightLights in the trees reflected in the pondThe Walled Garden lit up at nightFireworks over the pondFall color lit up along the shore at night
A millstone set above the waterfall on the old dam
A millstone from the gristmill, set above the falls
Florence Brooks Aten on the porch of her cabin in the woods
Florence Brooks Aten at Woods Mill Manor
A log cabin among tall pines
The first cabin in the pines
A drawing of the roof trusses over the Great Room
The Great Room trusses, drawn
Plans and a photograph of the stone powerhouse
The powerhouse, from a book on camp building
Florence Brooks Aten in the woods by the dam
Florence Brooks Aten by the dam
A family group posed outdoors, Florence Brooks Aten among them
Florence Brooks Aten with the Perley family
The Walled Garden turret under snow
The turret, rebuilt
The Healy family at a long table on the lawn at dusk
The Healy family
The estate from the air in summer
Lakefalls today
Before the estate1785

The mill

A gristmill grinds grain at the falls, at the origin of Otter Brook. Its millstones still frame the waterfall.

Woods Mill Manor1918

Woods Mill Manor

Florence Brooks Aten, a New Yorker in her early forties, buys three and a half acres by the old mill pond and names the place Woods Mill Manor.

Woods Mill Manor1918

Shinbone Shack

Digging for her first cabin turns up the bones of a moose. The shinbones are set into the fireplace hearth, and the cabin keeps the name.

Woods Mill Manor1927

The Lodge

Augustus Shepard, the leading architect of the Adirondack Great Camps, designs the Lodge. Its Great Room is 27 by 46 feet around a huge stone fireplace.

Woods Mill ManorBy 1928

The estate grows

She gathers some 1,500 acres and builds a stone powerhouse with a waterwheel, a boathouse, a larger pond with the waterfall spillway, a stone arch bridge and a walled garden.

The unfinished dream1929

The crash

The stock market crash takes her fortune, and the camp she had been building for more than a decade is never finished.

Between owners1934

The auction

The estate, once valued at more than $200,000, sells at auction for $9,800. Florence Brooks Aten lives on in nearby Swanzey until 1960.

Between owners1970s

The turret falls

After decades of changing hands, the turret of the Walled Garden collapses.

Lakefalls1990

The Healys arrive

The Healy family buys the estate, renovates the Lodge, rebuilds the turret and brings the cabins back to life. They live here still.

LakefallsToday

Still lived in

Two solar arrays power the estate, six houses welcome guests, and the family still lives here.

From the estate's own record, Alan F. Rumrill's “The dream of Woods Mill Manor” in the Keene Sentinel, and New Hampshire Magazine's “Shinbone Shack”.

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Visit

Walk the estate

The estate is most honestly understood by being walked. We host private property tours and reply personally to every inquiry, typically within forty-eight hours.

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More of Lakefalls

Keep exploring

The rest of the estate, from the story of the place to the six houses and the questions people ask first.

A ceremony on the Lodge Lawn from aboveWeddingsA group in the Lodge Great RoomGatheringsInside Boulder HouseStaysA twig-railed bridge on the trailContact