Tiverton will cover $1 million of a $2.6 million deal to preserve nearly 50 acres of historic north end farmland in perpetuity.

Members of the town council voted last month to use $1 million from the town’s open space acquisition fund toward the $2.6 million it will cost to place a conservation restriction on the Hicks Farm at 471 Main Road, which was established in 1731 and still remains in the Hicks family nearly 300 years later.

A deal was recently reached between the Hicks family and the Tiverton Open Space Commission and Tiverton Land Trust, and a conservation restriction will preserve 48.8 acres of the 83-acre property. The preserved land runs from Main Road down to Mt. Hope Bay.

“People new to town don’t recognize it as a big farm parcel, because the road is fairly well developed,” open space commission member Brian Janes said.

Amy Marchand Collins, a member of the Hicks family, wrote that preserving the land in its natural state has long been part of her goals for the property.

“Knowing that generations to come will be able to experience the same sense of wonder and connection to nature that I have enjoyed without the risk of someone coming in and cutting off access, is huge,” she wrote.

Land trust members have been eyeing the property for years, land trust president David Elliot said. The conservation easement will allow the land to be kept in its natural state and could be used for passive recreation in the future, he said, as the land trust and open space commission plan to develop walking trails in the area.

“This current generation of family is committed and has the vision of conserving the land,” Elliot said.

At their Monday, March 24 town council meeting, councilors agreed to cover $1 million of the cost, while the other $1.6 million will come from other sources including grants and donations.