As one of the most prominent natural resource features in Lincoln, Flint’s Pond serves as a wonderful recreation amenity and the town’s major water supply. After the arrival of European settlers, the land around the pond was used for meadows, orchards, pastureland, and woodland. In 1874, Concord and Lincoln began using Flint’s Pond as a public water supply. The area was Thoreau’s first choice for the location of his cabin, but the Flint family denied him permission because he had previously set an accidental fire near Fairhaven Bay. Julian DeCordova built his estate on the southeast shore of the pond in the 1880s, and this area is now the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park.

The first parcel of conservation land around the pond was acquired in 1958 after a group of concerned citizens saw the land slated for development. It was this acquisition project for which Lincoln residents formed the Lincoln Land Conservation Trust. Community sentiment strongly opposed developing the pond and the land transactions lasted until 2014 to ensure that all parcels surrounding the pond were protected.