The hidden gardens of Beacon Hill

Many of the old houses of Beacon Hill have beautiful front gardens and even more enchanting walled backyards.

In the late 1920s, a group of neighbors created the Beacon Hill Garden Club. Among the founding members was Arthur Shurcliff, then president

of the American Society of Landscape Architects and chief landscape architect for the restoration of Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.

A year after its formation, the Beacon Hill Garden Club sponsored their first hidden gardens tour of 11 gardens (charging $1 per ticket) and the event raised more than $1000 – back in 1929! Imagine that.

The tour remains the club’s major fundraiser. Participating residents graciously open their gardens to the public on the third Thursday of May each year to help the Garden Club support projects and causes. This year’s turnout was ~3,000 people and tickets cost ~$25. Learn more about this garden tour here and here.

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