The Southern Garden History Society is a group of enthusiasts and professionals that fosters and shares scholarly research about our historic gardens, cultural landscapes, and horticultural history through educational programs and publications. We celebrate the beauty and diversity of the South’s historic gardens and encourage their preservation and restoration so they may enrich the lives of others.
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From Texas to Maryland: Our Southern Garden Odyssey
Over the decades since our founding in 1982, SGHS members have visited scores of landscapes and gardens covering a wide expanse of the southern United States, ranging from Texas to Maryland, Florida to Kentucky and all in between. Some spots have been small and intimate, while others are recognized as internationally important. We are creating and populating a Gardens page as a means of recalling those gardens and their significance with those who joined in, as well as with Society members who were absent. As well, some gardens may be those not yet toured but which we hope very much to add to a future itinerary. An additional goal is that any visitor to our website, member or not, will find these verbal sketches, images, links, and book recommendations a welcome boost to their understanding of the richly vibrant garden history of the American South.
The John Fairey Garden | Hempstead, Texas
Society members walked about what was then known as Peckerwood Garden during the Sunday tour of the March 1999 Houston annual meeting. What they encountered was … Read More
Kenmore | Fredericksburg, Virginia
Society members visiting Kenmore during the 2005 Fredericksburg annual meeting found a site steeped in the lore of both the Washington family and of the Garden … Read More
Afton Villa | St. Francisville, Louisiana
Southern Garden History Society members have visited the Afton Villa gardens during two annual meetings. The first occasion came during the 1991 gathering in St. Francisville … Read More
Old Salem Museums & Gardens | Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Many readers know the importance of Old Salem as the birthplace of the Southern Garden History Society and for decades its Winston-Salem headquarters. Over the years, … Read More
Crowfield Plantation Gardens Site | Goose Creek, South Carolina
Dating to the 1730s, the gardens at Crowfield north of Charleston once ranked among the finest in colonial South Carolina. Aided by period documents, twentieth-century studies, … Read More
More articles can be found in our ARCHIVES