Annual Connecticut Historic Gardens Day
Join us on June 23rd, 2024, as numerous locations come together to celebrate the Annual Connecticut Historic Gardens Day. This special occasion highlights the splendor of Connecticut’s exquisite gardens, estates, and houses. Be sure to explore the websites of each location for comprehensive information, including details, addresses, and directions.
Bellamy-Ferriday House & Garden, Bethlehem, Connecticut
Bellamy-Ferriday House & Garden (9 Main Street North, Bethlehem, CT 06751): Roam the beautiful, landscaped areas of Bellamy-Ferriday’s 10-acre property. Marvel at Eliza’s breathtaking parterre garden, which dates to 1915, lovingly maintained and cared for first by her daughter Caroline Woolsey Ferriday and now by staff with the aid of the Watertown Garden Club. Staff will be on hand to answer questions.
Butler-McCook House & Garden, Hartford
Tour the historic Jacob Weidenmann Garden at Butler-McCook House & Garden (396 Main Street, Hartford, CT 06103), installed by Eliza Butler McCook and her sister Mary in 1865 and maintained today by the West Hartford Garden Club. Access Butler-McCook’s audio guide on any smartphone through the IZI Travel app onsite or at home.
Florence Griswold Museum, Old Lyme
Enjoy the FloGris Museum’s grounds (96 Lyme Street, Old Lyme, CT 06371) on this special state-wide celebration of historic gardens. Members of the Museum’s much-loved and dedicated Garden Gang will be on site in vintage attire to answer your garden- related questions and handout tussie-mussies to visitors.
Glebe House Museum and The Gertrude Jekyll Garden, Woodbury
Glebe House Museum (49 Hollow Road, Woodbury, CT 06798) will have an Open House (Main Floor Open); there will be free admission to the Jekyll Garden, where Garden Committee volunteers will be on hand to give tours and focus their talks on the 5-year plan for restoration that is already in process.
Harkness Memorial State Park, Waterford
Harkness (275 Great Neck Road, Waterford, CT 06385) will have docent-led tours of the mansion and gardens from 10am to 2 pm (last mansion tour starts at 1:30). Visit the gift shop!
Harriet Beecher Stowe Center, Hartford
The Harriet Beecher Stowe Center (77 Forest Street, Hartford, CT 06105) is offering free access to the gardens 12-4pm. “A garden is a place of healing to the soul.” Come enjoy Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Victorian cottage-style gardens and grounds during this special state-wide celebration. Dedicated volunteers will be onsite to answer your garden-related questions.
Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington
At Hill-Stead Museum (35 Mountain Road, Farmington, CT 06032), garden volunteers will be on-site 10am-4pm to answer questions about the Sunken Garden and Pollinator Garden. Talks about remarkable plants in the Sunken Garden will take place at 1 pm, 2 pm, and 3 pm.
The museum is open for tours from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. Garden programming is free. Guided tours of the house are available on a first-come, first-served basis for regular admission prices.
Mark Twain House and Museum, Hartford
From 12-4 pm at the Mark Twain House & Museum master gardeners and garden volunteers will be on site to discuss the plants and histories of the gardens. There will be digital scavenger hunts. The Museum Center and Gardens are free to visit; guided tours of the Historic House will have their normal fee, and advanced ticketing is recommended. Two of the ticketed guided tours (11 am and 1 pm) will be with a Living History actor playing the Clemens’s coachman Patrick McAleer. “Patrick” will be on site to talk to visitors in the gardens from 2:30-4:00 pm. Visit the Nook Cafe to purchase food and drink.
Osborne Homestead Museum, Derby
Osborne Homestead (500 Hawthorne Ave., Derby, CT 06418) will provide tours of the museum and its gardens from 12pm-4pm. After strolling through the gardens, visitors can tour the historic house museum where they will learn about Frances Osborne Kellogg’s love of flowers.
Phelps-Hatheway House and Garden, Suffield
Phelps-Hatheway (55 South Main Street, Suffield, CT 06078): The grounds of this 18th-century home on Suffield’s historic Main Street feature a formal parterre garden designed by landscape architect Mary Wells Edwards, a large herb bed, and scattered flowering shrubs. Members of the Suffield Garden Club, who carefully maintain the garden today, will be on hand to answer questions relating to the history of the garden and to its inventory.
Promisek at Three Rivers Farm, Bridgewater
At Promisek (694 Skyline Ridge Road, Bridgewater, CT 06752), the Beatrix Farrand Garden will be open for visitors from 12-4 pm at no cost. The Carlos Boltes trio will perform their unique Central and South American chamber music on the patio. Master Gardener Irene Skrybailo will give tours of the garden throughout the day. Guests are welcome to walk the many walking trails and enjoy open areas of the house.
Roseland Cottage, Woodstock
Celebrate the twentieth annual Connecticut’s Historic Gardens Day at Roseland Cottage (556 Route 169, Woodstock, CT 06281) with a guided tour of the formal boxwood parterre garden. Learn the history, significance, and theory behind the garden layout and design. Visitors are also invited to test their skill at croquet. Specialists will be on hand to assist with the traditional game played by the Bowen family during their summer sojourns in Woodstock. Enjoy the gardens and play the game that nearly brought down the presidency of Roseland guest Rutherford B. Hayes! Free guided garden tours on the hour, free croquet from 12 to 4.
Stanley-Whitman House, Farmington
At Stanley-Whitman House (37 High Street, Farmington, CT 06032), volunteers and staff will give both historic house and garden tours. “Living History” expert Dennis Picard will demonstrate medicinal concoctions of colonial times using herbs from S-WH’s gardens. Picard will share anecdotes about New England colonial life while demonstrating various cooking methods and recipes from colonial times. Reserve a tour time
Thankful Arnold House Museum, Haddam Historical Society, Haddam
At Thankful Arnold House Museum (14 Hayden Hill Road, Haddam, CT 06438), 12 -4 pm, visitors will learn how herbs, vegetables and plants were used by the Widow Thankful Arnold in the early 19th century. The Wilhelmina Ann Arnold Barnhart Memorial Garden features over 50 varieties of herbs including those used in cooking, dyeing, fragrance and medicine. This year’s activity for both adults and children will be making a small grapevine wreath or painting a small birdhouse. Light refreshments will also be served including our famous rhubarb tea.
Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, Wethersfield
Join us at Webb Deane Stevens (211 Main Street, Wethersfield, CT 06109) 12-4pm for complimentary refreshments, guided tours of the Amy Cogswell Colonial Revival Garden, and a free garden talk with Webb Dean Stevens’s Head Gardener Peter Winne. CT’s Historic Gardens Day guests will save $1 off the price of regular museum admission for guided historic house tours and exhibitions in the Holcombe Education Center.
Weir Farm National Historic Site, Wilton
Stop by Weir Farm (735 Nod Hill Road, Wilton, CT 06897) for short informal talks with expert Garden Crew volunteers at the four special gardens. Plant some seeds to take home, and learn about pollinators and poison ivy. Participate in fun activities at the Friends of Weir Farm tent! Enjoy art supplies provided by the Park and even take a hike to the pond. Lemonade and cookies will be served. Registration is not required. Admission and parking are free.