As a result, the state of New Hampshire stepped in and encouraged America's wealthy elite to buy up the farms and keep them afloat.

In 1888, Hay bought 1,000 acres (400 ha) along the shore of Lake Sunapee, with the hope of establishing a summer colony for his group of friends, known as the "Five of Hearts".

Hay named his property "The Fells", a British term for a rocky upland pasture, due to his Scottish ancestry.

Clarence and his wife Alice (née: Appleton) began to transform the rustic summer cottages into more of a lakeside mansion.

Starting in 1915, under the supervision of local architect Prentice Sanger, Clarence and Alice had the house renovated into the Colonial Revival style.

The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an important early example of the summer estate movement of the late 19th century in New Hampshire, and for its association with Hay, a leading politician and diplomat, at the height of his career.

Established in 1987 for migratory bird conservation, the John Hay National Wildlife Refuge was split in 2008.

The remaining one-third of the property continues as the John Hay National Wildlife Refuge, comprising 80 acres (32 ha) of hardwoods and softwoods, a small meadow, Beech Brook, fens, and vernal pools.