During his long and active life, B. W. (Bertram Whittier) Wells (1884–1978) was keenly interested in the study and preservation of North Carolina's unique landscape.
He spent time studying the Big Savannah in North Carolina's Pender County, a spot he made famous in his publications on "natural gardens."
Wells had a profound love for his retirement property, called Rock Cliff Farm, located on a bend in the Neuse River.
The property was subsumed within the Falls Lake State Recreation Area, where, in cooperation with the B. W. Wells Association and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the homestead has been preserved.
[2] The Rockcliff Farm property, home, and personally constructed art studio provided Wells with an ideal setting in which to cultivate his interest in painting.
Although his love for art had been lifelong and he had been involved in the McLean Mural controversy during his years at State, Wells began teaching himself to paint in his 70s.
James R. Troyer gathered much of the material in this collection during his preparation for the book, Nature's Champion: B. W. Wells, Tar Heel Ecologist.