Shakespearean Gardens celebrates 90 years

The Shakespearean Gardens celebrated its 90th anniversary last week with a garden party on May 28.

CONNOR LUCZKA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The Stratford Shakespearean Gardens celebrated its 90th anniversary last week, complete with cake, a fete and perfect garden party weather.

On a particularly sunny afternoon on May 28, the Friends of the Shakespearean Gardens invited community members and dignitaries alike to the gardens to celebrate its history, adorning the grounds with signs, balloons and informative notices.

Although it is just one garden in a city known for its horticulture, the Shakespearean Gardens are an important historical and cultural fixture in the city.

“For the past 90 years, the Shakespearean Gardens has been a special place in the heart of Stratford, delighting both residents and visitors alike,” Perth-Wellington MP John Nater wrote in a commemorative letter for the anniversary, read that day by Stratford Mayor Martin Ritsma. “This beautiful sanctuary beside the river connects us to the history that has made Stratford the city it is today, from the plants and the flowers that arrived from Stratford, England, and are mentioned in the plays and sonnets of William Shakespeare to the striking tower once part of the Dufton Woollen Mill that stood on this site. These gardens commemorate the art and industry that have defined our city for generations.”

The gardens are next to the Perth County Courthouse on Huron Street, just before the stone bridge crossing the Avon River and beyond a wooden lychgate bearing its name. Like its name suggests, it is a Shakespeare garden, a garden that specifically cultivates the plants mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare. They are common globally; however, in Canada there are only a few public gardens known. As such, the garden in Stratford, which has grown over 60 species of plants mentioned in the Bard’s plays, attracts thousands of visitors each and every year. 

Before it was a garden, and as Nater’s letter alluded to, the site housed the Dufton Woollen Mill, the chimney of which is the only surviving feature after an early 20th century fire. That tower, still prominent in the gardens today, also happens to be the inspiration for the City of Stratford’s logo.

Thomas Orr, a prominent turn-of-the-century community leader, had previously wanted to create a Shakespeare garden downtown and when the empty lands were put up for sale, he petitioned the council of the day to purchase the land, which it did.

In 1925 the city purchased the land and began work designing the garden; however, due to the Great Depression in the ‘30s, the gardens took longer than expected to open, completely stalling until 1934. It wasn’t until 11 years after the work started, in 1936, that the gardens opened. When it did, the opening was a huge event, drawing visitors from afar to Stratford. Then Governor General of Canada, Lord Tweedsmuir, officially opened the gardens to much fanfare.

It wasn’t until many decades later that its unofficial caretakers began to work on it.

“In 1979 there was a group of garden enthusiasts and historical people – guess who that was?” said Reg White, chair of the Friends of the Shakespearean Gardens, at the celebration. “… We saw some things that we thought could be improved, and we thought, ‘Well, hey … we should help.’ and we created an organization that very day.”

Since its inception, the volunteer group keeps the grounds tidy and advocates for the gardens’ continued success. It also recently spearheaded an informational brochure to raise the gardens’ profile and inform tourists of the gardens’ significance.

“City hall is probably the most photographed site in Stratford, but if it's not the first, this is, and if city hall is the first, this is definitely the second,” said Ritsma during the celebration. “… One other thing I will say as well, that when I think about the history of city hall, the friends of the gardens here were instrumental as well in the late ‘60s, early ‘70s of being part of ‘No, we're not going to take that building down.’ So you reach beyond the gardens, and we thank you for that as well. Thank you very much.”

Ritsma was quick to thank more than just the friends during his speech, as he noticed a few familiar faces in the crowd: members of the Orr family.

“There's so many fingerprints in our history of the Orr family that we can never say thank you enough,” Ritsma said. “So, thank you for being here, and thank you for not only what you've done in the community in the past, but what you continue to do in the present as well.” The Friends of the Shakespearean Gardens, the unofficial caretakers of the gardens, invited residents, visitors, and dignitaries alike to the celebration.