WILMOT – With its pastures, woodlands, beaver pond and views of Mount Kearsarge, this 1820s Cape on 81 acres is a piece of rural New Hampshire history.

Located at 70 N. Wilmot Road, just outside of the Wilmot village off Route 4A, the property is about six miles from the center of New London.

Surrounded by a mature woodlot, the property has its own pond and a four-acre wetland with a row boat and boathouse. It also has many paths, including one maintained on the property by the Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway. The path connects with a trail that follows along Eagle Pond, crosses Route 11 near New Canada Road, and continues on to Ragged Mountain.

Owned by the Wilcox family for several generations, it is now being offered by Coldwell Banker Milestone Real Estate in New London for $687,500. Marilyn Kidder is the listing agent.

The house is almost as old as the town. Wilmot was incorporated in 1807, and it was only about 13 years later that this house was built on what must have been a major highway at the time.

Now, Kidder said, the only traffic the road gets is usually commuter-type traffic in the morning and evening.

Wilmot is a town of about 1,300 residents that was once a section of New London.

The town is known for its natural beauty and its parks, including Winslow State Park, on the side of Mount Kearsarge.

It's also the home of poet Donald Hall. The town's landscape is the subject of many of Hall's writings, particularly Eagle Pond.

The Wilcox family purchased the property in 1956 and later bought a small lot across the street to ensure that there were no houses that could be seen from the farmhouse.

The views from the house and the fields surrounding it encompass Ragged Mountain and Mount Kearsarge. Much of the 81-acre property is in current use protection. (PAULA TRACY)

The simple post and beam Cape has four bedrooms, two baths and a large family room. The doors, window frames, wide painted wooden floors, wainscoting and a few gunstock corner posts appear to be original. There are Bennington-style door knobs and wonderful molding accents that have never been harmed by updating.

The kitchen is large and has an eating area and a built-in desk. The downstairs has a living room, a dining room, a den that can also be used as a bedroom, a three-quarter bathroom that is outfitted for handicap use, and a lovely sun room with three-season porch with a view of Ragged Mountain from the west.

The second floor has four bedrooms with a full bathroom. The windows in many of the rooms take in the vista of Ragged Mountain and Mount Kearsarge across the fields.

The house has its own artesian well. It has oil as the primary heat source, gets electricity from New Hampshire Electric Cooperative and the town has mandatory recycling. Kearsarge Regional is the school system.

Kidder said the property is rich with wildlife and has active signs of grouse, kingfisher, blue heron, fox, deer and moose.

The stately weathered barn is 34 by 48 feet and has been well maintained, including a new roof.

The land around the house has old New England perennial gardens, apple trees, asparagus and blackberries. There is a small farm pond next to the house and a decorative well next to the road.

Most of the land is in current use. The taxes on the property for 2007-08 are $6,500.

The MLS number is 245002. For more information, call Marilyn Kidder at 526-4116 or email marilyn@cbmilestone.com.