Sherborn’s summer gathering place

Farm Pond

A 125-acre glacial pond ringed by woods, with a sandy town beach and no motorboats.

Farm Pond is where Sherborn spends its summers. The town beach sits on a wooded shore on Lake Street, and on a warm day the pond fills with swimmers, paddlers, and small sailboats.

The pond is a “kettle” lake, formed by a melting block of glacial ice. It covers about 125 acres and is about 58 feet deep at its deepest point. Despite its size, it has kept the name “pond.”

No motors of any kind are allowed, which keeps the water quiet. People come to swim, kayak, canoe, stand-up paddleboard, sail, and fish.

Aerial view of the sandy Farm Pond town beach and swim dock, with the Sherborn Yacht Club docks to the right and fall woods all around — The town beach and swim dock, with the yacht club docks to the right.

Getting there

The beach and parking

During the beach season, parking in the Farm Pond parking lot requires a current resident Farm Pond sticker (also used for the Transfer Station) purchased at Sherborn Town Hall or one of the Town’s limited nonresident passes that are awarded by lottery.

The stone bath house sits at the edge of the parking lot, and a paved path leads down to the boat launch.

Bringing a boat? Boats need a Town of Sherborn boat permit and must be washed at the washing station before launching. Dogs and horses are not allowed.

Farm Pond through the years

A short history

From the Sherborn Historical Commission’s timeline at the pond.

1850–1935

Ice harvesting

Ice was cut from Farm Pond and sold from Clark’s Ice House on Lake Street, which was lost in the Hurricane of 1938.

1866

A “Great Pond”

The Commonwealth designated Farm Pond a “Great Pond,” the status given to large natural ponds in Massachusetts.

1870–1897

The first recreation era

The pond became a popular destination, with three picnic areas, swimming beaches, and rides on the steamboat Atlanta, a historic wood-burning steamboat that operated on the pond.

1897–1935

A hospital’s water supply

Farm Pond was made the water supply for Medfield State Hospital, and swimming and recreational boating were prohibited.

1935–1938

The beach is built

An act of the state legislature allowed recreation to resume. During the Depression, the federal Works Progress Administration paid local laborers to build the beach, bath house, kiosk, parking lot, paths, and stone walls, with materials provided by a Town Meeting vote.

1938–today

Still much the same

The Farm Pond Through the Years history sign by the Sherborn Historical Commission

The stone bath house, paths, and walls built in the 1930s remain largely unchanged, and Farm Pond is still the center of summer life in Sherborn.

Around the pond

Farm Pond up close

The island, the 1930s bath house, the lookout, and the boat launch.

A small wooded island in Farm Pond with fall color along the shore — The island, in early fall.

The stone bath house at Farm Pond beside the parking lot — The stone bath house, built in the 1930s.

A stone-walled lookout with a bench above Farm Pond — A lookout with a bench above the water.

The Farm Pond boat launch with a kayak at the water’s edge, posted pond rules and boat permit signs, and sailboats beyond — The boat launch and its posted rules.

Swimming lanes, a dock, and sailboats at Farm Pond on a summer day — Swim lanes and sailboats in summer.

Snow-covered shoreline and a lifeguard chair at Farm Pond in winter — The beach after a winter snowfall.

Sherborn Yacht Club sailboats, kayaks, and paddleboards at the club docks on Farm Pond on a summer day, with sailors out on the water — Sherborn Yacht Club boats at the docks on a summer day.

Sailing on Farm Pond

The Sherborn Yacht Club

The Sherborn Yacht Club (SYC) is a popular membership club on Farm Pond and the center of sailing and boating activity during the summer. The club is generally open seven days a week from mid-June through Labor Day, with members able to use its fleet of sailboats, kayaks, canoes, stand-up paddleboards, and other equipment.

SYC offers sailing lessons and programs for children and adults, along with weekend racing, regattas, and social and recreational events throughout the summer.

Seasonal moorings are available for members and other Farm Pond boaters who want to keep small sailboats, kayaks, canoes, paddleboards, and similar watercraft at the pond instead of transporting them back and forth. Moorings are available from mid-May into early October.

Membership is open to Sherborn residents, with non-resident memberships also available through a sponsoring Sherborn member. Members are permitted to bring guests. sherbornyachtclub.org

Good to know

Before you go

Lot parking requires a resident sticker or a nonresident Farm Pond sticker (nonresident stickers are awarded by lottery).
No motors of any kind on the pond.
Boats need a Town boat permit and a wash at the washing station before launching.
No dogs or horses.
The Sherborn Snappers summer swim team is based at the beach.

Go straight to the source

Farm Pond (Town of Sherborn)

sherbornma.org 508-651-7851

Sherborn Recreation

sherbornma.myrec.com 774-721-2196

Sherborn Snappers swim team

SherbornSnappers.com

Sherborn Yacht Club

sherbornyachtclub.org