Westmoreland
Westmoreland is a peninsula with West Neck Bay on the north side and West Neck Creek and West Neck Harbor on the south side. Its anchor is historic Westmoreland Farm, which was owned by Captain Thomas Morgan Turner, an heir to a textile fortune who was also an enthusiast of the arts, dined with President William McKinley and whose brother worked at the Vatican.
In July, 1905, James Barrie’s “Peter Pan” was performed outdoors at Westmoreland Farm with Broadway luminary of the day Maude Adams playing the title role.
In 1919, four years after the death of Captain Turner, his family lost the farm when it was auctioned to the Brander Brothers, who in turn lost it during the Stock Market Crash of 1929.
James Roe acquired the farm and it has remained in his family ever since. Francis Roe Kestler wrote “Never Never Land, the Saga of Westmoreland Farm” which chronicled its rich history and her childhood there. Horses still graze alongside the road in the pastures with the original barns with tall chimneys and mature trees as a beautiful backdrop.
Vintage aerial photos show that Westmoreland Drive, which currently runs down the middle of the peninsula, once ran along the bay side.
