The First Hundred Years - Garden Club of Morristown

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The First Hundred Years
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1913 - 2013
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Garden Club of Morristown
Garden Clu b of Morristown
The First Hu ndr ed Y ear s
1913 – 2013
Helen T. Bru net
ii
iii
iv
v
vi
Introduction
When the Garden Club of Morristown was founded in May
1913, Morristown, New Jersey was in the full flower of the
Gilded Age.
Already well known as General Washington’s headquarters
during the 1777-78 and 1778-79 winters of the American
Revolution, Morristown went through a complete change in
identity one hundred years later, in the late 1800’s, when it was
discovered as a summer place by wealthy New Yorkers looking
for a home in the country located close enough to the city to
allow them to commute by train to their offices.
View of Morristown From Fort Nonsense, c. 1855
Edward Kranich, (1826-1891) Oil on Canvas1
1
From the collection of Macculloch Hall Historical Museum, Morristown, NJ
Photograph by Stan Freeny
1
1
Introduction
In this new era it was not the strategic location of Morristown
which was the attraction, as it had been for General Washington,
but rather the natural beauty of the town, the distant view of
rolling hills, the quiet streets dominated by elegant shade trees,
the comfortable homes of earlier generations and the town’s
pleasant summer climate.
When these newcomers leased houses for the summer to
escape the city heat, they soon discovered how pleasant life could
be in a small, but culturally sophisticated, town.
The Lyceum, an imposing stone building on the north side
of South Street, just east of the Church of the Redeemer,
was built in 1878. It housed the town library and a spacious
theater where lectures, light opera, revues and other
entertainments could be enjoyed. It was gutted by fire in
1914, but the outer structure was salvaged and it became an
armory; it was torn down some years later.
For sports enthusiasts, The Whippany River Club on Corey
Lane in Morris Township offered polo, tennis, handball, squash
22
Introduction
and horseback riding, as well as stabling for carriage horses and a
variety of large carriages. It survived only until 1910 when the
club house and stables were destroyed by fire.
The Morristown Field Club opened in 1891 with two lawn
tennis courts and by the late 1890’s, it offered a nine-hole golf
course and an annual horse show.2
The Morris County Golf Club, on Punch Bowl Road,
founded in 1894, catered to the fast growing sport of golf and is
still considered one of the premier golf courses in New Jersey.
Horsemen found much to interest them in the Morristown
area; the countryside offered fox hunting, horse racing, polo and
the elegant sport of coaching. Trotting races were popular at the
track on South Street, now the Seton Hackney County Park.
Horse racing was not limited to the track; spontaneous races
often broke out on South Street on the way to and from the
track.
After a season or two renting summer quarters and sampling
the country life, many city dwellers were ready to buy, preferably
a home larger and grander than their friends’ houses. In the late
1800’s the best address for property with maximum exposure was
considered to be either Madison Avenue or South Street.
But just a little further from the town center, the land
developer John Dodd Canfield was attracting buyers to the new
residential areas –– Normandy Heights, Normandy Park and
Convent. Canfield aimed to build homes for wealthy, socially
acceptable buyers much the way Stewart Hartshorn did in
developing Short Hills, New Jersey in the same era.
2
In its early days, The Field Club, now at 168 James Street, was located on South
Street, where King’s Supermarket is now.
3
3
IIntroduction
ntroduction
Thee h
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Charles
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Morristown Medical
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F
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ttw
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ccentury.
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Building large
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Hi
Historian
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ohn R
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ae ssummed
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th
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he richest
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wealthy
ealthy people
people in
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world.” 4
3
Ph
Photograph
otograph From
From the
the collections
collections of
of the
the North
North Jersey
Jersey History
Histor y Center
Center
Th
Thee Morristown
Morristown and
and Morris
Morr is T
Township
ownship L
Library
ibrary
4
Rae,
Rae, John
J oh n W
W.,., Mo
Morristown:
rrriistown: A Military
M ilitarryy H
Headquarters
eadquarters ooff tthe
he American
Amerriican
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off A
America
Re
volution, The
The Making
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ng o
m erica SSeries,
er ies, 88..
44
Chapter One
The Kissels
A New York couple who bought property in Morristown
were Gustav and Caroline Kissel. Gustav E. Kissel was a
founder, with his brother Rudolph, of Kissel, Kinnecutt and
Company, investment bankers in New York. Caroline was a
granddaughter of Commodore Vanderbilt.
The Kissels were among the first wave of wealthy young New
Yorkers who chose Morristown as a summer home. Unlike many
others who would rent a house before committing to the country
life, the Kissels bought a farm first, spent the summers in an old
house on the property and finally built a home fifteen years later.
In 1887 the Kissels bought a 120 acre property in
Washington Valley known as Solitude, which consisted of a
number of small farms, pastures and woodland. On the property
was a large frame house, Wheatsheaf, which had been an inn in
the early 1800’s.
The original Wheatsheaf, once a country inn.
For the next fifteen years the Kissels spent their summers at
Wheatsheaf, with their growing family of a son, William Thorn
Kissel, called Thorn, and three daughters, Dorothy, Jeanette and
Louise. In the winter they lived in New York, at 12 East 55th
Street.
5
5
Chapter One
The Kissels
Gustav was a horseman who enjoyed every aspect of the
outdoor life. He constructed a polo field in one of his fields; he
and his son played polo with other teams from the area.
In 1900, the Kissels began discussions with an architect for a
new home on the property.
In early 1903 work was started on a brick manor house, to be
called Wheatsheaf House, which would replace Wheatsheaf as the
Kissels’ summer home. The over-all measurement of the house
would be 144 feet by 50 feet. It would be two stories high, and
include a ballroom (de rigueur in large houses in the Morristown
area at that time), nine bedrooms and five bathrooms for family
and guests as well as a large servant’s wing. Gustav tinkered with
the house plans to include the very latest in plumbing, heating
and electricity.
Wheatsheaf House, built by Gustav Kissel in 1904.
The stable area was perfectly appointed, with stalls for a
number of carriage horses as well as riding horses and polo
ponies. In the carriage house, Gustav had installed an automatic
carriage wash.
The garden came last – Gustav closely monitored the
landscaping necessary to transform rough farmland into
6
6
Chapter One
The Kissels
woodland and formal gardens. On May 16, 1906 Gustav wrote in
a journal5: “Still working on the grounds of the new house. I have
60 men grading and planting. Have planted 10,000 new shrubs
and trees so far,” but he added in a further comment, that he was
“a long way from being finished.”
A view of the back of Wheatsheaf House, about
1925. The terrace gave a view of the polo field,
as well as woodland and perennial gardens.
Gustav Kissel died in 1911 at the age of fifty-seven, leaving
his wife Caroline, whom he called “Lina,” and four children.
Caroline continued to live at Wheatsheaf House in the
summer and in New York in the winter. During the summers in
the country, she had grown increasingly interested in gardening,
as had many ladies in her social set in Morristown.
In May of 1913, perhaps seeking a diversion in her recent
widowhood and inspired by friends in Philadelphia who had
5
Three journals kept by Gustav Kissel are now owned by the Morris County
Historical Society and stored at Acorn Hall in Morristown. In them,
Gustav wrote of family life, recorded expenses, and made a few
gardening notes.
7
7
8
Chapter Two
1913-1930
The first regular meeting of the Garden Club of Morristown
took place in late May 1913 at the home of Mrs. William V. S.
Thorne in Normandy Park.
The Thorne’s impressive 30- room home in Normandy Park7, was the site of
the first GCM meeting. It is now the Unitarian Fellowship, 21 Normandy
Heights Road, near the Morris Museum.
Mrs. Gustav Kissel was elected president. Officers included
Mrs. Henry A. Henriques, Secretary, and Mrs. William V. S.
Thorne, treasurer. The original membership of thirty-five also
included: Mrs. George G. Fraser, Mrs. George Frelinghuysen,
Mrs. Wynant Vanderpool Sr., Mrs. Charles Scribner, Mrs. John
Claflin, Mrs. D. H. McAlpin, Mrs. Charles Bradley, Mrs. J.O.H
Pitney, Miss Louise Shelton, Miss Belle Ballantine, Mrs. Mabel
Clark and Mrs. T. Towar Bates.
7
From the collections of the North Jersey History Center
The Morristown and Morris Township Library
9
9
Chapter Two
1913-1930
The new club composed a form to be filled out when a
member wished to propose or second a new candidate for
membership. This same form was used through the 1950’s:
10
10
Chapter Two
1913-1930
Also at that first meeting, the Club’s mission was agreed
upon: “to promote garden culture by the exchange of ideas on
all matters pertaining to the garden.” Dues were set at $2.00 a
year; meetings were scheduled in spring, summer and fall.
We have Mrs. T. Towar Bates to thank for an account of the
early days of the new garden club when she wrote the club’s first
history to celebrate its thirty-fifth anniversary in 1948.
Summarizing the first garden club meetings, Mrs. Bates
wrote, “At first there was little to report so we just talked and had tea and
a pleasant afternoon… Very few of these ladies did actual digging – this was
left to gardeners.”8
World War I, which began in 1914 in Europe and which the
United States entered in 1917, gave a more serious focus to
garden club meetings. Club members worked for the local Red
Cross and sold Liberty Bonds.
The club supported the Women’s Land Army, under the
direction of GCM member Mrs. J. Otis Post who headed the unit
in Morristown. Each member of the garden club was to
contribute $5 toward expenses for the local unit.
Mrs. Bates reported:
“The girls who worked in the Land Army were many of them girls who
knew nothing about country life or farm work, but they did very good work –
after training on various farms and private estates. They took care of
chickens, milked cows, pitched hay, and in South Jersey, helped harvest the
cranberry crop…”
8
Mrs. Bates’s club history and all of the archives of the Garden Club of
Morristown are stored in the Morristown and Morris Township Library.
11
11
Chapter Two
Chapter
Chapt
Two
1913-1930
19
13-1930
Women’s
Wo
m e n ’s L
Land
and A
Army
rmy
Mrs.
Mrs. B
Bates’s
ates’s narrative
narrative continued:
continued:
“In
“In 11917,
917, the
the Garden
Garden Club
Club of
of Morristown
Morrrrriistown joined
joined tthe
he newly
new
wlly formed
formed
Garden
G
arden C
Club
lub ooff Am
America,
erriica, w
which
hich broadened
broadened tthe
he focus
focus of
of ou
ourr cclub.
lub. W
Wee nnow
ow
supported
sup
su
pported nnational
ational pprojects
rojec
ectts su
such
ch aass saving
saving the
the California
Calif
l fornia Redwoods
Red
edw
woods and
and
adde
addedd a nnational
ational sslant
ati
lant ttoo oour
ur ccampaign
ampai
am
paiggn ag
pai
against
ainst bi
billboards.”
llboar
ards
ds.” M
Mrs.
rs. B
Bates
ates
noted
n
oted iin
nh
her
er tth
thirty-five-year
hirty-five-year h
history
istory o
off tth
the
he Club
Club how
how informative
informative
sshe
he ffound
ound tthe
he meetings
meetings with
with other
other G
GCA
CA cclubs
lubs from
from all
all o
over
ver tthe
he
co
untrryy “f
“fr
rom M
ro
aine to
to California
Calif
l fornia aand
nd ddown
own ttoo F
lorriida.”
country
“from
Maine
Florida.”
Shee was
Sh
was not
not comfortable
comfortable with
with the
tth
he new
new emphasis
emphasis on
on flower
ffllower
arranging.
arranging. N
New
ew fformal
ormal rrules
ules ffor
or ffl
flower
lower sshows
hows ccalled
alled for
for ccarefully
arefully
cchosen
hosen vvases
ases or
or other
other receptacles
receptacles and
and a precisely
precisely selected
selected place
place
ffor
or tthe
he finished
finished arrangement
arrangement … “t
“the
he mantle
mantle piece
iano – hhall
all table
ttaable
piece – ppiano
– ddining
ining ttable
able or
or oother
ther pplace
lace ooff vantage…
vantage… or
or flower
flower arrangements
arrrrangements to
to be
be
displayed
di
spl
play
ayed iinn nniches.”
iches.”
Mrs.
Mrs. B
Bates
ates recalled
recalled the
the first
first time
time she
she attempted
attempted to
to do an
an
ar
rangement iin
nan
iche: “I should
should like
like here
here to
to tell
tell you
you of
of what
what happened
happpened
ha
arrangement
niche:
ttoo m
mee aatt a fflower
lower sshow,
how, where
where there
there was
was one
one exhibit
exhibit which
which represented
represented each
each
cclub.
lub. I w
was
as ffascinated
ascinated bbyy tthe
he woman
woman w
who
ho w
was
as ddoing
oing tthe
he arrangement
arrrrangement next
next to
to
mine
mi
ne ttoo see
see her
her produce
produce a folding
folding measure,
measure, not
not three
thrreee feet
feet but
but SIX
SIX feet
feet long!
long!
Shee measured
Sh
measured and
and pulled
pulled and
and nnipped
ipped aand
nd m
made
ade a bbeautiful
eautifful ppicture.
icture. T
The
he
co
container
ntainer wa
wass llarge
arge aand
nd tthe
he aarrangement
rrrrangement wh
when
en finished
ffiinished measured
measured 5 feet
feet by
by 3
12
12
Chapter Two
1913-1930
feet and everything had to be in proportion. I left it to my eye, but she did not.
I got nothing, she the blue! It just goes to show that the yard stick is mightier
than the eye.”
Early in the 1920’s, Conservation Chairman Miss Marie
Halsted organized a committee to launch a vigorous campaign
against the tent caterpillar. The committee members gave talks in
public schools and organized groups of school children to seize
and destroy tent caterpillar egg cases. Prizes were awarded to the
group that destroyed the most egg cases.
For the first time GCM members took part in public
planting on their own without the aid of their gardeners. They
planted shrubs and flowers in the spring of 1923 at the Woman’s
Work and Art Exchange on South Street. 9
In the 1920’s, GCM flower arranging enthusiasts did not
confine themselves to in-club shows. They entered shows open
to the public as well, sometimes drawing resentment from the
public.
John Rae wrote of the popularity of flower shows in all
strata of society, and how difficult it was for many exhibitors to
compete with the big estate gardens.
"Typical was the year 1922 when multi colored blooms
from almost every estate in the area were exhibited in the
Morris County Gardener’s Florist Show in the Armory.
9
The Woman’s Work and Art Exchange was located in the red brick building
at 83 South Street, next to the library, which eventually became The
Book Shop. The building is now owned by the library and leased to
Hampshire Real Estate Company.
13
13
Chapter Two
1913-1930
Winners included Mrs. Paul Moore and Mrs. Charles
Bradley, chrysanthemums; Mrs. Ridley Watts, flower
arrangements; Mrs. Hamilton McK. Twombly, specimen
blooms; Mrs. Richard A. McCurdy and Mrs. Peter H.B.
Frelinghuysen, Carnations; Mrs. Samuel Gillespie, yellow
roses; and Mrs. Gustav Kissel, arrangements.”10
In the 1920’s an intriguing summer project of the Garden
Club of Morristown, under the auspices of the National Plant and
Fruit Guild, was the establishment of a flower stall at Hoboken
Train Station where commuters could donate flowers from their
wives’ gardens to be distributed daily to the hospitals and shut-ins
of the city. A local woman was hired to tend the booth.
The mental picture of the well-heeled commuter boarding the
Millionaire’s Express in Morristown with a large bouquet of
flowers in one hand and a briefcase in the other hand, is indeed a
pleasing thought.
10
Rae, John W. and Rae, John W. Jr., Morristown’s Forgotten Past – “The Gilded
Age”: the Story of a New Jersey Town, Once A Society Center
for the Nation’s Wealthy, 184
14
14
Chapter Three
Early GCM Gardens
Although many of the early twentieth century gardens in the
Morristown area were designed by landscape design firms,
members of the Garden Club of Morristown were also influenced
by one of their founding members, Miss Louise Shelton, who
lived in Morristown on Miller Road.
Louise Shelton was a landscape architect and author, who
wrote Beautiful Gardens in America, published by Scribner’s in 1915
and republished in 1924. For material for her books, she traveled
the country studying and photographing gardens which she
considered exceptional. Her career was very unusual at a time
when few women of her background had jobs, let alone, careers.
Miss Shelton described the gardens which accompanied the
large houses of the Gilded Age throughout the country in the
1900-1925 period as formal in style, with allées, geometric beds
of flowering plants grown in the bedding out system (in which a
specific color scheme and design were achieved by transplanting
from cold frames), sweeping lawns and garden ornaments placed
in strategic places. The dominant influences on American gardens
at the time, she wrote, were English gardens and Italian gardens.
Louise Shelton in the 1920’s.
15
15
Chapter Three
Early GCM Gardens
Of our members’ gardens photographed by Miss Shelton for
Beautiful Gardens in America, the Charles McAlpin garden, called
Glen Alpine, (the house still stands on the corner of Mt. Kemble
Avenue and Tempe Wick Road) was one of her favorites. She
admired “Its setting of old trees on three sides, with the upsloping hill to the rear covered with choice blossoming trees and
evergreens as well as the ancient hedge, [both of which] furnish a
background in keeping with the dignity of the place.”11
The Charles McAlpin garden, Glen Alpine, about 1912.
Miss Shelton also commended the McAlpin garden for its
exacting planting plan, which achieved prolonged bloom from
May 22 until frost.
If Louise Shelton had a single mantra it was “continuous
bloom.” In one of her popular garden books, Continuous Bloom in
America, she included planting plans for the perennials needed
and enough of the right annuals to keep the planting scheme in
bloom for the 26 weeks of bloom possible in the New York area.
11
Shelton, Louise, Beautiful Gardens in America, 156.
16
16
Chapter Three
Early GCM Gardens
The plans are as intricate as petit-point, and required hundreds and
hundreds of plants grown in cold frames and greenhouses and
tended by skilled gardeners.
All of the early gardens featured well tended immaculate
paths, whether of grass, gravel, bricks or paving stones, which
invited strolling and were punctuated with sitting alcoves to enjoy
a view, the sound of a water feature, or to seek a private moment.
Miss Shelton described this garden in her 1915 book, Beautiful
Gardens in America: “At Cherrycroft, [the home of Mrs. Dudley Olcott
on Normandy Parkway in Morristown] the garden also blooms
continuously…The pergola and tea-house lead out to a maze formed by
a tall Arbor-Vitae hedge…The outlook over the formal garden, both
from house and pergola, is upon a sea of flowers, possibly unequalled in
its profusion of bloom.”12
12
Shelton, 156-157.
17
17
Chapter Three
Early GCM Gardens
At Ridgewood Hill [in Morristown, at the junction of Woodland Avenue
and South Street, home of Mrs. F. D. Humphries], “the planting is for
spring and autumn bloom, and its three-terraced garden is an excellent
piece of work, nestling to the hillside with its vista of hills beyond. This
lovely nook deserves to rank among the best in terraced gardens.”13
Miss Caroline Foster served on the Visiting Gardens
Committee for the Garden Club of Morristown in the mid1920’s. We found in our records her typewritten list of the 16
GCM members’ gardens to which visitors were welcome. The
gardens pictured on the following pages were all included on
the list.
13
Ibid, 157.
18
18
Chapter Three
Early GCM Gardens
These copies of glass slides of Mrs. Kissel’s garden at Wheatsheaf House in
Morristown date from the mid 1920’s and were hand colored. The terrace
above the garden (Chapter One) was a favorite place for garden club teas
and luncheons, well into the 1940’s.
19
19
Chapter Three
Early GCM Gardens
Mrs. Charles Scribner’s garden on van Beuren Road in
Morristown, shows the devotion to geometric shapes and
patterns of many early twentieth century gardens.
Below, the path under the arches at the Scribner garden
leads past a fountain to a family chapel.
20
20
Chapter Three
Early GCM Gardens
Above, the garden of Mrs. Frederic van Beuren on van
Beuren Road, Morristown, in the mid -1930’s.
The garden of Mrs. James Marshall Allen at Glenallyn in Convent, designed by
Brinley and Holbrook in 1915, featured this stunning peony walk and myriad
smaller gardens planted on a series of terraces joined by stone steps.
21
21
Chapter Three
Chapter
Chapt
Three
Early
GCM
Gardens
Ea
rly G
CM G
ardens
Mr
Mrs.
s. Lloyd
Llo yd Saltus
Saltus in
in her
h er spring
spriin
ng garden
garden on
on Blackberry
Blackberry Lane,
Lane, in
in New
New Vernon
Verno n in
in the
t he
1930’s.
1930’s. In
In winter,
w iin
nter, the
th e Saltuses
Saltuses lived
lived on
on Miller
M iilller Road
Road in
in Morristown,
Morristown, and
an d in
in summer
summer
in Maine.
M aine.
Thee ggarden
Mrs.
Frederick
Avenue,
Morristown
Th
ard en of
of M
rs. F
rederick R.
R. Kellogg
Kellllogg on
on Colles
Co lllles A
ven ue, M
orrist own in
in
the
the 1920’s.
1920’s. The
Th e brick
brick reflecting
reffle
lect iin
ng pool,
poo l, now
now unused,
unused, can
can still
st iillll be
be seen;
seen; the
th e
property
pr
op ert y iiss now The
Th e Kellogg
Kellogg Club,
Club, a neighborhood
n eighb orhood ssocial
o cial aand
nd sswim
w iim
m club.
club.
22
22
Chapter Four
The 1930’s
The Great Depression followed the stock market crash of
1929, which affected economics around the world.
Whether GCM members suffered significant losses during
the Depression or not, everyone was adversely affected by the
new income tax (which, like our club, came into being in 1913),
as well as increased inheritance and property taxes. Maintaining
big houses was getting more and more expensive; by the mid1930’s many of the Gilded Age mansions in Morristown had
already been torn down.
A far greater concern was the chronic unemployment, locally
and across the country. Without regular paychecks, poor families
went hungry. Some GCM members loaned plots of land to needy
families to grow vegetables and our club supplied seed, fertilizer
and seed potatoes to many needy families.
Also important were the garden club projects which created
jobs for the unemployed: landscaping the island in Burnham
Park, providing shrubs for a corner of the Green and some
planting at All Soul’s Hospital14 as well as Neighborhood House,
Mt. Kemble Home and the Municipal Building. Unemployed
workers were hired to do the work.
Mrs. Frederick Kellogg commissioned a team of unemployed
brick layers to construct a brick wall in front of her house on
Colles Avenue in Morristown which can still be seen today.
In 1937 Mrs. Paul Moore provided funds for a Garden
Center at the Woman’s Exchange and hired an Ambler
horticulture graduate student to answer gardening questions for
the public.
The garden club meetings did not change very much during
the 1930’s. Many of our members still had enough household
help to run at full capacity – in many cases the domestic team of
cook and kitchen help, butler, footmen, maids, chauffeur and
gardeners, had been only slightly reduced since World War I.
14
All Souls Hospital, at 95 Mt. Kemble Avenue, is now Atlantic Rehabilitation
Institute.
23
23
Chapter Four
The 1930’s
Recalling these early days of elaborate entertaining, we have a
wonderful written reminiscence of a luncheon given by Mrs.
Kissel in the early 1930’s. It was written by Anne Pitney (Mrs.
Mahlon Pitney) fifty years later, in 1981, in the form of notes and
comments to introduce a program on the glass slide collection of
early gardens in our club.
She wrote, “I became a member of the club in the early ‘thirties and
had the fun of knowing the big and beautiful gardens of the older members:
that was the era of butlers (Howley at Jenny Kinney’s, Plowright at Mrs.
Moore’s and so on), and the era of elaborate teas served by dark uniformed
souls with ecru lace caps and aprons and of course, [it was] the era of
fulltime, year-round gardeners, often with helpers.”
Mrs. Pitney particularly remembered the garden club
luncheon at Mrs. Kissel’s.
“Everything was pink – a pink ribbon around a pink napkin in which
was hiding a roll – all on a pink plate. Pink dessert, wee pink cakes, pink
mints. I don’t remember that the potatoes and lettuce were pink but they
might have been.”
The following paragraph from the fifty- year club history15
tells a good deal about the effect (or lack of) that the Great
Depression had on the members of the Morristown Garden
Club:
“ In 1938 the depression appeared to be over. We continued working but our meetings
became gayer and more lavish…a high spot was a picnic at Jockey Hollow Park. Hamper
after hamper of food was carried to the spot by liveried chauffeurs, and a delicious lunch was
served. …
Another gala occasion occurred in October. Miss Lidgerwood entertained the entire club
at luncheon at the Morris County Golf Club. The twenty-two small tables were decorated in
competition by members, and Mrs. Frank Abell was the winner with a green and copper
color
scheme
accented
by
a
single
branch
of
pyracantha.
…”
15
The Fifty Year History of the Garden Club of Morristown was written in 1963
by Marie Halsted and Etta Larson assisted by Anne Dunbar.
24
24
Chapter Five
The 1940’s
During World War II, 1940-1945, the members of the
Garden Club of Morristown devoted themselves to patriotic
activities on behalf of the war effort. Members made
convalescent hospital robes and surgical dressings, and helped
raise funds for Bundles for Britain.
Following the suggestion of the local Agricultural Agent, that
food should come from “home gardens with home labor,” GCM
members’ gardens changed from an emphasis on ornamentals to
vegetables, which were canned in members’ kitchens or given
fresh to the local hospitals.
This poster, from the New Hampshire State Library
collection of World War II posters, was designed to encourage
the use of foods grown in the family Victory Garden. As
commercially canned goods were rationed, the Victory Garden
2525
Chapter Five
The 1940’s
became an indispensable source of food for the home front
which produced fresh produce and saved money at the same
time.
As a club we heartily embraced the Victory Garden
movement. Mrs. Warren Kinney, Mrs. Paul Moore and Mrs.
Clifford Brown, who had large properties and good help,
produced one and a half tons of food for the All Souls Hospital
and Morristown Memorial Hospital.
In 1942 the Garden Club of Morristown, working with the
Office of Civil Defense, organized a round table discussion which
was held at the Morristown Library one evening a week, with
professional gardeners and Club volunteers answering questions
from members of the public who wished to grow more
vegetables in their home gardens.
GCM worked with other area garden clubs and the Morris
County Gardeners and Florists Society to produce a Victory
Garden Harvest Show. The proceeds went to the Army
Emergency and Navy Relief Funds.
2626
Chapter Five
The 1940’s
Working with the Home Garden Club, the GCM
organized a weekly flower mart held at the Vail
Mansion on South Street in Morristown. The
proceeds went to the war effort.
In 1946, with the war over, the Club returned to its prewar
schedule of twelve meetings a year, with speakers, more elaborate
teas, frequent flower shows and new civic projects such as the
Blue Star tribute to service men and women, spearheaded in New
Jersey by GCM member Mrs. Frederick R. Kellogg and the
Garden Club of New Jersey. In our area, Route 22 between
Union County and Hunterdon County is a Blue Star Highway.
In July 1949 the founder of the Garden Club of Morristown,
Mrs. Gustav Kissel, died at the age of ninety-one at her
Morristown home, Wheatsheaf House.
2727
Chapter Five
The 1940’s
Mrs. Kissel was fondly remembered for her “keen civic interest
and a rare sense of humor…she was loved by all who knew her… she was a
constant reminder of the dignity and security of a gentler age… her peach
blown complexion… her soft silver hair … her wise and cheerful judgments
were as feminine and assured as were her flowing skirts and handsome
furs…” 16
Caroline Thorn Kissel, 1858 - 1949
From a drawing by John Singer Sargeant, 1923.
16
Compiled from various memorial tribute letters in GCM files.
28
28
29
Chapter Six
The 1950’s and GCM Gardens at Mid-Century
as well as some sections of the garden. The McAlpin house on
Mt. Kemble Avenue, Glen Alpine, had by that time changed
hands several times, the gardens diminishing with each change.
At mid-century there were many smaller gardens belonging to
members, which could be maintained by part time gardening help
and in some cases, with the owners lending a hand.
In addition to Mrs. Paul Moore’s garden which had long been
a favorite site for the annual meeting in the 1950’s, there were the
Elliott Averett’s garden in Chatham Township and the Warren
Kinney's garden in New Vernon.
In June the Averett’s house was festooned with wisteria flowers.
30
30
Chapter Six
The 1950’s and GCM Gardens at Mid-Century
Pink dogwood at the Averett’s garden.
31
31
Chapter Six
The 1950’s and GCM Gardens at Mid-Century
The Warren Kinney’s garden on Long Hill Road in New
Vernon was part of a large property that included a dairy farm. A
handsome stone wall enclosed the garden to protect it from
wandering farm animals.
Ruth Cutler and Frances Buel in the Kinney’s rose garden in the 1950’s.
The Kinney’s head gardener was George Smith who helped on garden
club projects, especially at Christmas when he made 40 feet of evergreen
roping for the Lyon’s Veterans’ Hospital. In 1967 he received a citation from
the club president, Winnie Milliken, left in the picture. Marie Halsted is on the
right.
32
32
Chapter Six
The 1950’s and GCM Gardens at Mid-Century
Garden of Mrs. Paul Moore, Convent, in the 1950’s. At that time it was one
of the few remaining of the large early gardens.
Jeanette Bourne’s garden on Sand Spring Road, New Vernon, now the
home of Susan Deeks.
33
33
Chapter Six
The 1950’s and GCM Gardens at Mid-Century
Bea Frelinghuysen’s rose garden in the 1950’s.
In 1952 a GCM tour of Morristown gardens and sites of historic
interest took place in June as a fundraiser to benefit GCM civic
projects.
The nine members whose gardens were on the tour were:
Mesdames Averett, Bourne, Frelinghuysen, Kinney, Kellogg,
William Moore, Paul Moore, Weed and Williams. The GCM was
awarded a citation and medal by the Garden Club of New Jersey
and the tour netted $1,600 for community projects. Proceeds were
distributed as follows:
A contribution to the Garden Club of New Jersey’s campaign to
urge the State to buy the twelve-mile strip of ocean beachfront
from the Phipp’s Estate for preservation as a bird sanctuary and
educational park. The campaign was successful, and in 1953 New
Jersey designated the preserved area Island Beach State Park.
34
34
Chapter Six
The 1950’s and GCM Gardens at Mid-Century
$650 was awarded to Rutgers College towards the purchase of
Mettler’s Woods, now managed by the Somerset County Park
Commission.
Starting a nature trail at the Morris Junior Museum17 under the
direction of Mrs. Dunbar and Mrs. Stowell, with all trees and shrubs
marked by metal labels designed by Mrs. Seymour Saltus.
In the 1950’s there was a renewed interest in horticulture in the
garden club. In flower shows, horticulture seemed to dominate over
flower arranging, or at least it appears so as one reads the garden club
history of the first fifty years published in 1964: “looking back on the
fifties: Our interest in horticulture has been stimulated over the years
by a few knowledgeable members, and by the end of this decade we
had a large number of intelligent horticulturists. In May of 1959, the
Garden Club of America Chairman asked four of our members to
speak at the Central Eastern Zone meeting in Englewood on ‘How
We Ran Our Horticultural Shows,’ presented by a panel of Mrs.
Koven, Mrs. Macy, Mrs. Keyes and Mrs. Bourne and moderated, for
GCA by Mrs. Nicholas Dupont.”18
Mrs. Elliott Averett was awarded the Garden Club of America’s
Horticultural Knowledge and Achievement Award in 1956.
This increased interest in horticulture had many practical
applications, not the least of which was the restoration of the
Macculloch Hall grounds and garden. Members were encouraged to
draw planting plans and make suggestions, to be judged by Dr. Ben
Blackburn, who then met with the club and pointed out the best
features of the five finalists.
17
The Morris Junior Museum was at that time located in a house on Madison
Avenue, at the corner of Turtle Road.
18
Written by Mmes. Halsted, Larson and Dunbar.
35
35
Chapter Six
The 1950’s and GCM Gardens at Mid-Century
Macculloch Hall seen from the back, in 1959, before the restoration.
Two housekeeping changes were suggested by the Garden
Club of America: in 1958 our annual meeting, which had always
been held in November, was changed to the May meeting to
coincide with the Garden Club of America calendar and in 1959,
GCA adopted strict qualifications for flower show judges.
At Christmas 1959, the news broke that the Port Authority of
New York planned to create a fourth metropolitan jetport in the
Great Swamp. If the plan went through, Millington would be
erased by runways and hangars, as would Bernardsville, Basking
Ridge and Madison.
36
36
37
38
Chapter Seven
Chapter
Chapt
Seven
19
60’s Part
Part One:
One: Threats
Threats
1960’s
Ph
Photograph
otograph o
off tthe
he G
Great
reat SSwamp
wamp b
byy M
Molly
olly A
Adams
d ams
39
39
Chapter Seven
1960’s Part One: Threats
Hardscrabble Dam
Midway through the Great Swamp battle, another
environmental threat loomed on the horizon.
Isabel and Fred Bartenstein, who lived on Leddell Road in
Mendham, were horrified in the early spring of 1965 when the
Supervising Engineer of New Jersey’s Division of Water Policy
and Supply made a speech revealing plans to build Hardscrabble
Dam on the upper Passaic River, which would put the
Bartenstein’s hillside home on the shore of a reservoir. Thirty
other home sites in the Mendham-Bernardsville area would be
partially or completely inundated. The proposed reservoir would
also flood many acres of woods bordering Morristown National
Historic Park.
The Hardscrabble Committee was formed immediately to
fight the proposal, but they had an uphill struggle with public
opinion. Most concerned citizens were already fighting the jetport
and many, including the Bartensteins, had dug deep in their bank
accounts to help the New Jersey Conservation Foundation buy
acreage in the Great Swamp to defeat the jetport. The
Hardscrabble Dam would affect few people by comparison with
the impact of a jetport, but it would have historical consequences.
By inundating an area just outside the boundaries of the
National Park which was long thought to be the campsite of the
New Jersey Brigade during the bitter winter of 1779-80, it would
make it impossible to research the exact location of that site
which had remained a mystery for many years.
To Isabel Bartenstein, a Wellesley trained amateur historian,
finding the exact site was a direct challenge. Armed with gentle
persistence combined with a sharp mind and true Virginia charm,
she simply would not give up. Over the next two years she
examined old maps, deeds and other records and explored on
foot what was considered by many to be the most likely location
for the encampment.
40
40
41
Chapter Seven
1960’s Part One: Threats
The Cross Estate Garden
Not only did Isabel Bartenstein’s sleuthing establish the
location of the New Jersey Brigade Encampment in the winter of
1779-80 during the American Revolution, it successfully defeated
the Hardscrabble Dam Project. Quite unexpectedly, it also
opened the way to the creation of a fine public garden.
42
42
43
Chapter Eight
The 1960’s Part Two: GCM’s Fiftieth Anniversary
Mmes Niles, Earle Cutler and Fairburn, dressed in period
costumes were the hostesses. Others in period dress included
club officers: Miss Foster, Miss Halsted, and Mrs. Larson.
Ten members were honored who had served the club for more
than twenty-five years: Mrs. Henry Shaw, Miss Caroline Foster,
Mrs. Wynant Vanderpool, Mrs. Paul Moore, Mrs. Thomas
Streeter, Mrs. E.N. Cutler, Mrs. Elliott Averett, Miss Marie
Halsted, Mrs. Leon Freeman and Mrs. Warren Kinney.
Members who had been in the club for 50 years or longer
included Mrs. Henry Shaw and Miss Caroline B. Foster.
The featured entertainment was a skit written by Brooke Price
and directed by Mrs. Donald Kipp, starring five GCM members
representing different characters in our, at that time, ongoing
struggle with the Port Authority.
Miss Marie L. G. Halsted was awarded a special citation and
“grateful appreciation for her many years of generous service and
dedicated interest in every aspect of our Club’s activity.”
The 50-year history of the Garden Club of Morristown, written
by Mrs. Larson and Miss Halsted and Mrs. Dunbar was then
presented to the members.
44
44
Chapter Eight
Chapter
Chapt
Eight
The
Part
Two:
GCM’s
The 1960’s
1960’s P
art T
Tw
wo: G
CM’s Fiftieth
Fiiftieth Anniversary
F
Anniversary
An
Anne
ne D
Dunbar,
unbar, E
Etta
tta L
Larson,
a r so n , M
Marie
ar ie H
Halsted
alsted aand
nd M
Miss
iss C
Caroline
aroliin
ne B
B.. F
Foster
oster aatt tthe
he
50thAn
Anniversary
niversary G
Gala
ala o
off tthe
he G
Garden
arden C
Club
lub o
off M
Morristown,
orristown, Jan
January
uary 11964,
964, at
Macculloch
Ma
cculloch Hall.
Hall.
45
45
Chapter Eight
The 1960’s Part Two: GCM’s Fiftieth Anniversary
Marion Niles and her mother, Mrs. Freeman
Bev Cutler, Edith Kirk and Mrs. Vanderpool
46
46
Chapter Eight
Chapter
Chapt
Eight
The
Part
Two:
GCM’s
The 1960’s
1960’s P
art T
Tw
wo: G
CM’s Fiftieth
Fiiftieth Anniversary
F
Anniversary
Mrs.
Mrs. Streeter
Str eeter and
and Mrs.
Mrs. Shaw
S ha w
47
47
Chapter Eight
The 1960’s Part Two: GCM’s Fiftieth Anniversary
Bev Cutler in period dress
Morristown Mayor W. Parsons Todd and Miss Foster
48
48
Chapter Nine
The 1970’s
After the 1960’s scare about the jetport, the next decade
seems calm by comparison.
In 1970 Mimi Pitney and Nicky Clifford started a pilot
program of horticultural therapy with patients at Greystone
Psychiatric Hospital. Most of the patients in the new program
were those who were soon to go home, and gardening therapy –
such as informative talks on plants and trees and flower arranging
– was useful for them as they took up their former lives. The
program was taken over by Suzie Connell and a small committee
who kept it going year-round for a number of years.
In 1976 we joined with the Madison Garden Club to hear
British arranger Sheila Macqueen lecture on “Victorian
Approach to Flower Arranging” and attended workshops
given by her the next day.
49
49
Chapter Nine
The 1970’s
Dr. Ben Blackburn gave a series of six plant study sessions at the Willowwood
Arboretum in Chester.
Members’ Meetings were popular during the 1970’s and no
wonder. Here is a sample from the March meeting in 1976-77,
when four of our members spoke briefly on interesting subjects:
Plant Explorers by Anne Pitney, Medicinal Use of Plants by Sally
Dudley, Vegetables Used Now and in Colonial Times by Cynthia
Robinson and Colonial Garden Design by Isabel Bartenstein.
The subjects of other programs included gardening under
lights, topiary, bulbs and flower arranging.
The Frelinghuysen Arboretum was dedicated by Peter
Frelinghuysen in memory of his aunt, our former member Miss
Matilda Frelinghuysen, on May 23, 1971. Our club gave $1300 in
her memory, to be matched by the Federal Government, for the
first phase of the creation of the rose garden.
50
50
51
52
Chapter Nine
The 1970’s
Betty Thomas, Chairman of the Bicentennial21 Project
Committee, in the mid-1970’s, met regularly over a period of
several years with representatives of the Garden Club of Summit,
the Garden Club of the Oranges, the Garden Club of Short Hills
and the Garden Club of Somerset Hills to plan new planting at
Washington’s Headquarters in Morristown.
The total budget was $10,000, contributed by the five clubs.
The plans had to be approved by the Federal Government,
custodian of the historic property. After a great many meetings,
the Ford Mansion, Headquarters for General Washington from
December 1779 - June 1780 was planted with new shrubs, trees
and ground covers, appropriate to the period.
21
The United States Bicentennial celebrations culminated on Sunday, July 4,
1976, with festivities marking the 200th anniversary of the adoption of the
Declaration of Independence.
53
53
Chapter Nine
The 1970’s
Photo by Molly Adams
The garden at Macculloch Hall in Morristown was restored by the Garden
Club of Morristown under the direction of club member Maisie Macy.
Built by George Perrot Macculloch, engineer of the Morris Canal,
and lived in by a succession of five generations of his family,
Macculloch Hall has been a landmark in Morristown since the early
1800’s.
Mrs. Otis Post, an active member of the Garden Club of Morristown,
lived in the house with her two young sons. They were the last
Macculloch descendents to occupy the historic home.
In the 1960’s, the house and grounds were purchased by Mr. W.
Parsons Todd and incorporated into the Macculloch Hall Historical
Museum, which is supported by the W. Parsons Todd Foundation and
managed by twenty trustees which today include Garden Club of
Morristown members Meryl Carmel, Alice D. Cutler, and Pam Hirsch.
54
54
Chapter Ten
The 1980’s and GCM’s 75th Anniversary
Historic Morven, Princeton
In 1982, the New Jersey Governor's Mansion was relocated
from Morven, in Princeton, to nearby Drumthwacket and
Morven was converted to a museum
Originally part of a 5,500-acre tract purchased from William
Penn in 1701 by the Stockton family, Morven eventually became
the site of the home of Richard Stockton, a Signer of the
Declaration of Independence.
When it was opened as an historic museum in 1983, there
was renewed interest in researching the original gardens. Our club
joined with other garden clubs in the state to raise money for the
restoration of the original gardens on the grounds. Isabel
Bartenstein spearheaded an effort to win a Founder’s Fund award
for the project; it didn’t win but it was a runner-up. Isabel worked
diligently for a number of years on fund raising for the
restoration of the Morven gardens. She ran a yearly spring plant
sale in a tent on the Morven grounds.
55
55
56
Chapter Ten
The 1980’s and GCM’s 75th Anniversary
We had interesting programs over the decade of the 1980’s –
on low maintenance perennials, trough gardens, Japanese and
Chinese Gardens, wildflowers and a fascinating slide show and
talk by the Somerset Hills Garden Club on homes and gardens in
their area. We took some excursions – to the New Jersey
Botanical Garden at Skylands, to the GCA Headquarters in NYC,
to Wave Hill and, closer to home, to Willowwood Arboretum.
In the late 1980’s the long awaited Hagerty Education Center
was completed at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum. The new
structure, with a large meeting room, and classrooms on the
lower level, was added to the back the Frelinghuysen carriage
house. It quickly became the preferred place to hold garden club
meetings. We could easily have a large flower show there, or a
slide show with darkened windows. Parking was no problem. The
result was that over the twenty-five years since the Haggerty
Education Center was built we have had fewer meetings in
members’ homes. Many members consider this a great loss.
Another change in our meetings came at about the same time:
after eighty years of meeting in the afternoon we switched to
mostly morning meetings. An unforeseen effect of this change
was the simplifying of the food and drink offered at meetings.
The hostesses no longer had to provide an afternoon tea with
sweets, hot tea, sandwiches and little cakes. The morning fare is
generally coffee, a cookie, fruit and cheese and crackers – much
easier than a full tea.
57
57
Chapter Ten
The 1980’s and GCM’s 75th Anniversary
Our club had a birthday – our 75th, on November 16, 1988,
celebrated with a party at Jane Koven’s, and a program, arranged by
Peggy Krementz and Betty Thomas, with skits by various members
impersonating the founding members. The dress code called for hats
and white gloves.
58
58
Chapter Ten
Chapter
Chapt
Ten
The
Th
e 1980’s
1980’s and
and GCM’s
GCM’s 75th A
Anniversary
nniversary
Helen
Helen McAlpin,
McAlpiin
n, Chris
Chris W
Willemsen,
illemsen, Sandy
Sandy Walsh,
Walsh, Bobsy
Bobsy Wells
Wells
Ruth
Cutler
Ruth C
utler
59
59
Chapter Ten
Chapter
Chapt
Ten
The
Th
e 1980’s
1980’s and
and GCM’s
GCM’s 75th A
Anniversary
nniversary
Joan
Joan L
Larson,
arson, K
Kim
iim
mD
Dougherty,
ougherty, C
Cindy
iin
nd y Y
Yeaw,
ea w, Cynthia
Cynthia Robinson
Robiin
nson
Helen Brunet
Brunet reading
readiin
ng the
the Garden
Garden Club
Club history
h i sto r y
Helen
60
60
Chapter Ten
Chapter
Chapt
Ten
The
Th
e 1980’s
1980’s and
and GCM’s
GCM’s 75th A
Anniversary
nniversary
Th
Three
ree ladies
lad ies in
in the
the foreground:
foreground: Mrs.
Mrs. Cook
Cook ((white
white hat),
h a t),
Beaa F
Frelinghuysen
Dorothy
blue
Be
reliin
nghuysen aand
nd D
orothy Weed
Weed in
in b
lue jacket.
jacket.
Jeanne
Will
Je
anne W
ill
Koven
Kis
Marckwald
JJane
a ne K
oven aand
nd K
is M
arckwald
61
61
Chapter Ten
The 1980’s and GCM’s 75th Anniversary
Chapter
Chapt
Cha
pter Ten
Ten
The
Th
e 1980’s
1980’s and
and GCM’s
GCM’s 75th A
Anniversary
nniversary
Babe
Babe B
Billings
illiin
ngs
Babe Billings
Bevv C
Cutler
Hellie
Be
utler and
and H
ellie SStowell,
towell,
Joan
Nicky
L’Hommedieu
Joan Murray
Murray aand
nd N
icky L
’Hommed ieu
Bev Cutler and Hellie Stowell,
Joan Murray and Nicky L’Hommedieu
62
62
62
Chapter Eleven
The 1990’s
Pat and Al Lazor
We launched the nineties decade with an auction
fundraiser/dinner party. Pat and Al Lazor offered their glorious
house on Roebling Road in Bernardsville for the event. Kirk
Materne and Kim Foley were the auctioneers, and the bidding –
and the laughter – were nonstop all evening.
63
63
Chapter Eleven
Chapter
Chapt
Eleven
The
The 1990’s
1990’s
Mmes.
Mmes. Keyes,
Keyes, Stowell,
Stowell, Niles
Niles and
and Malin
Maliin
n
Fundraising
Fundraisiin
ng came
came in
in all
all sizes.
sizes. Talented
Talented artist
artist and
and garden
garden club
club member
member
Joan
Larson
and
Joan L
arson ccreated
r eated a watercolor
watercolor of
of the
the leathery
leathery grape
gra pe fern,
fern, a rare an
d
protected
protected fern
fern in
in Morris
Morris County,
County, New
New Jersey.
Jer sey. It
It made
made an
an attractive
a ttr active post
post card,
card,
which
wh
ich we sold
sold in
in packets.
packets. Proceeds
Proceeds went
went to
to local
loca l conservation
conserva tion projects.
projects. The
The
project
project was
was under
under the
the auspices
auspices of the
the GCA
GCA Conservation
Conser vation Committee.
Committee.
64
64
65
Chapter Eleven
Chapter
Chapt
Eleven
The
The 1990’s
1990’s
A 11990’s
990’s ccivics
ivics project
project that
that has
has improved
iim
mproved the
the appearance
appearance of
of Morristown
Morristown
was
was our
our eeffort,
ffort, together
together with
with the
the Morristown
Morristown Partnership,
Partner ship, on
on the
the installation
iin
nstallation
of brick
brick raised
raised beds
beds and
and wrought
wrought iron
iron ffences
ences and
and benches
benches on Morris
Morris Street
Street in
in
front
off tthe
Morris
fr
ont o
he Burger
Burger King
King shopping
shopping ccenter
enter on
on M
orr is SStreet.
tr eet.
Peggy
Peggy Krementz
Krementz and
and Susan
Susan Deeks
Deeks planting
pla nting on
on Morris
Morris Street.
S treet.
Be
low, An
Below
Ann
nE
Ewig,
wig, C
Corinne
or iin
nn e L
Lee,
ee, Pat
Pat Lazor
Lazor aand
nd N
Nicky
icky L
L’Hommedieu
’Hommedieu
66
66
Chapter Eleven
The 1990’s
In the spring of 1997 our garden club heard the news that
Chris Willemsen would be the next president of the Garden Club
of America. This was a first for our club, and indeed only the
second time a GCA president had been chosen from Zone IV,
the first being Millicent Johnson from the Rumson Garden Club,
who was president of GCA from 1983 – 1985.
We all took full credit, of course. After all, she was our
president first, from 1984-1986. We had gotten used to her being
a behind the scenes participant in everything our club did. She
was, and still is, an expert at working harder than anyone and
then praising others for a job well done.
Our club set to work organizing a send-off party for Chris at
the Frelinghuysen Arboretum in June 1997. The dinner was
elegant pot-luck, the entertainment was a mixture of sincere
accolades and some very irreverent spoofs.
67
67
Chapter Eleven
The 1990’s
Chris dressed as our founder, Mrs. Kissel.
68
68
Chapter Eleven
The 1990’s
Chris with Peggy Krementz and Helen Brunet, spoof writers, and Bonnie
Lundberg, who made a cake which was an entirely edible replica of Chris’s
garden.
69
69
Chapter Eleven
The 1990’s
Alan and Chris Willemsen admire Bonnie Lundberg’s confectionary replica of
Chris’s garden, in which even the fence posts were edible.
70
70
Chapter Eleven
The 1990’s
President of the Garden Club of America, 1997-1999.
Chris Willemsen
A good deal of our energies as a club were devoted to planning and preparing for
the GCA Annual meeting, held at the Parsippany New Jersey Hilton in June 1999. In
the end, we had good weather, successful dinner parties, brilliant speeches and none of
the buses got lost.
The last garden club event in the old millennium was the Christmas wreath
making and lunch at the Presbyterian Church in New Vernon, considered by many
members to be the high point of any year. After lunch, the wreaths and Christmas
arrangements we made were delivered to community agencies.
71
71
Chapter Eleven
Chapter
Chapt
Eleven
The
The 1990’s
1990’s
Katie
Katie Porter,
Porter, Isabel
Isabel Malin,
Ma lin, Maisie
Maisie Macy
Ma cy and
a nd Ginny
G iin
nny Pierson
Pierson
L
Lunch
unch ccrew:
r ew: JJoan
oa n L
Larson,
a r s on, L
Lucia
ucia Holland,
Holland, B
Bonnie
onnie Lundberg
Lundberg
and
and JJane
McKnight.
a ne M
cKnight.
72
72
Chapter Twelve
2000 - 2013
The new millennium started out with our club hosting
the GCA Zone IV meeting, held in the fall of 2000.
Painting niches for the Zone IV flower show, Metamorphosis, held at the
Frelinghuysen Arboretum: Nicky L’Hommedieu, Cynthia Robinson, Pat
Lazor, Corrine Lee, Joan Murray, Nancy Deutsch and Anne Waite.
Pat Lazor’s photograph captured the mood of the show,
and won a blue ribbon.
73
73
74
Chapter Twelve
2000 - 2013
Granite memorial bench on the grounds of the
Frelinghuysen Arboretum, commemorating those who
died on September 11, 2001
75
75
Chapter Twelve
2000 - 2013
Our programs in the years 2000-2013 included a flower
arranging workshop given by noted arranger Laurie Appel in
November of 2000, talks on herbs, storm water, wildflowers of
South Africa, garden accents, the best of the English tradition in
table decoration, gardens of Mt. Vernon and great garden
combinations given by Kent Russell.
We also had talks on garden plants for year ‘round interest,
clean water, trough making, song birds, growing peonies, historic
gardens, honey bees, the GCA Centennial tree project, floral
design, creating a rain garden, underwater plants and viburnums.
Thanks to Alexandra Mead and her committee, there has been
a refreshing change in parties with husbands – just for fun
evenings with potluck supper and a wine/beer bar and no fund
raising. Themes have included a men’s flower arranging
competition, dressing in clothes with sparkle and a Yankee Swap
party.
Bruce Hazen and Stu Brunet made an award winning arrangement
in the Men’s Flower Arranging competition in 2010.
7676
Chapter
Chapter
Twelve
Twelve
2000
- 2013
2000
- 2013
Our garden
Our garden
club contributed
club contributed
springspring
bulbsbulbs
to thetorenovation
the renovation
of Carrie
of Carrie
Foster’s
Foster’s
in front
her cottage
at Fosterfields.
We were
invited
to view
gardengarden
in front
of herofcottage
at Fosterfields.
We were
invited
to view
the the
daffodils
weprovided,
had provided,
and pose
a group
Swayne,
daffodils
we had
and pose
for a for
group
photo:photo:
Susie Susie
Swayne,
PeggyPeggy
Krementz,
Twinkle
Partridge,
Chambliss,
Krementz,
Twinkle
Tong,Tong,
MissyMissy
Partridge,
DebraDebra
Chambliss,
Ann Ann
Ewig,Ewig,
Brunet,
Xandra
van Bergen,
Ann Nash
and Mimi
Pitney.
HelenHelen
Brunet,
Xandra
van Bergen,
Ann Nash
and Mimi
Pitney.
the 2012
IV Meeting,
At theAt2012
ZoneZone
IV Meeting,
GCMGCM
president
DebraDebra
president
Chambliss
accepted
the Gavel
Chambliss
accepted
the Gavel
AwardAward
for the
the the
forclub
the receiving
club receiving
most most
pointspoints
in horticulture,
in horticulture,
floral floral
designdesign
and photography
and photography
competitions
held atheld
theat the
competitions
meeting.
GCMGCM
has won
meeting.
has the
wonlast
the last
five out
seven
competitions
fiveofout
of seven
competitions
held atheld
zone
meetings.
at zone
meetings.
77
77 77
Chapter Twelve
2000 - 2013
2003 Plant Sale, Xandra van Bergen, Susan Deeks, Jane McKnight
and Peggy Krementz setting up.
Nicky L’Hommedieu and the Tribute Fund Committee have been
involved with various projects – a garden at the Morristown Medical
Center, Kids 4 Kids… planting a Rose of Sharon tree at Neighborhood
House in honor of DD Abeles who moved to Maine… planting
boxwood in two planters at the Morristown/Morris Township Library
in Morristown, in honor of Dick Krementz.
The Partners for
Plants program
members pulled
barberry in Jockey
Hollow Park in the
summer of 2010.
Kathryn Mustaro,
Adrienne Kirby, park
ranger, Pam
Harding, Susie
Swayne and Edda
Gillen.
78
78
Chapter Twelve
2000 - 2013
Planting on the Green in Morristown in the fall of 2012– Alice
Cutler, Pam Hirsch, Debra Chambliss, Mimi Carrington,
Twinkle Tong, Susan Deeks and Susie Swayne. Extra muscle
supplied by Alice’s son Ben. We will plant 1000 more bulbs
throughout Morristown in the fall of 2013 as part of our GCM
Centennial Celebration
August 2012, Missy
Partridge visited
Mimi Pitney in
Camden, Maine
where Mimi now
lives. Mimi, who
joined the garden
club in 1960, is
our most senior
member.
7979
Chapter Twelve
2000 - 2013
GCM Presid ent De bra C hamb liss on the Cente nnial Yea r
“It has been a Centennial Year all around –– the Garden Club of Morristown's,
of course, but also The Garden Club of
America's. To celebrate that Centennial
there were festivities in NYC culminating
in the dedication of a half million dollar
Founder's Fund project – the redesign of
the East 69th Street entrance to Central
Park for which all GCA clubs
contributed funds. In the Centennial Tree
Project, a total of 23,500 trees were
planted all over the country by individual
clubs. Additionally, 10,000 daffodils,22 were
planted in Central Park and Mayor
Bloomberg even declared June 3, 2013
Garden Club of America Day.
Debra Chambliss
More than 600 GCA members attended a formal dinner at the The Colony
Club in New York City. Fifty of the top GCA flower arrangers had created
fantastic table arrangements.
GCM member Chris Willemsen, who is an advisor to the Centennial
Committee (as well as being a past president of GCA), was there. Darby
Scott, Alice Cutler and I were there as representatives of the Garden Club
of Morristown. I stayed on the next day for the formal ribbon cutting in
Central Park. Attending were members of the Central Park Conservancy,
the Mayor's Office and various GCA officials including Chris Willemsen .
An acorn from one of the oldest Oak trees in the Park was given to
each of us –– especially appropriate since the acorn is the emblem of the
GCA Centennial.”
- Debra Chambliss
22
The daffodils planted were Narcissus ‘Garden Club of America’
named to commemorate the GCA Centennial.
80
80
Chapter Twelve
2000 - 2013
Alice Cutler, Chris Willemsen, Debra Chambliss and Darby Scott
attended the GCA Centennial Dinner at The Colony Club in New
York on June 2, 2013.
Our Centennial Celebration in the Garden Club of
Morristown is a small replica of the GCA celebration.
For the Tree Project, we planted trees in several locations,
following plans drawn up by landscape architect and GCM
member, Ann Granberry. We planted an Amelanchier x
grandiflora - Apple Serviceberry - at the P.G. Chambers
school in Cedar Knolls and a Kousa Dogwood at St. Peter's
Church on South Street in Morristown. Planting at
Neighborhood House included a willow oak, a crabapple with
white flowers and various shrubs and perennials.
8181
82
Chapter Thirteen
Today’s Gardens
In this section are some recent pictures of our members’
gardens. We didn’t think ahead on this and were taken by surprise
– it was already winter when we realized that we needed pictures
of our summer gardens before the following summer when this
book would be at the printer’s.
Many thanks to the members who rummaged through
cupboards, drawers, filing cabinets and computers – next time
we’ll know...
Adrienne Kirby’s perennial border, Mendham
83
83
Chapter Thirteen
Today’s Gardens
Chris Willemsen’s garden in Mendham
Photo by Liza Koven
84
84
Chapter Thirteen
Today’s Gardens
Supper under the Kwanzan cherry tree at Liza Koven’s in New Vernon
85
85
Chapter Thirteen
Today’s Gardens
Alice Cutler’s terrace garden, Morristown
Lucia Holland’s summer border, Mendham
86
86
87
Chapter Thirteen
Today’s Gardens
Jeanne Will’s herb garden, Chester
88
88
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter
Chapt
Thirteen
Today’s
Gardens
Today’s G
ardens
Katie
Porter’s
Ka
tie P
orter’s ccourtyard
ourtyard ggarden,
arden, Mendham
Mendham
Susan
Deek’s
Su
san D
eek’s tterrace,
errace, New
New Vernon
Vernon
89
89
Chapter Thirteen
Today’s Gardens
Pat Lazor’s new vegetable garden in Bedminster.
Below, Peggy Krementz weeding in her lakeside woodland garden with her helper
(?),Ruby the Cat.
Photo by Liza Koven.
9090
91
92
Garden club meetings were considerably enlivened by senior
members Hellie Stowell and her sister, Anne Pitney, who
delighted us with their outfits. Hellie always wore lavender and
Anne wore blue and, with the least provocation, a large matching
hat. Anne, an accomplished horticulturist, would get up in
meetings and deliver a five-minute talk on some horticultural
topic using no notes. It is her paen to the joys of gardening that is
printed on the back cover of this book.
For a unique sense of fashion in the older generation it was
impossible to beat Carrie Foster who was one of the founding
members of the garden club in 1913 and lived into her nineties.
Her costume of choice was a straw boater hat, white shirt and
man’s tie worn with a jacket, tailored skirt, white socks and saddle
shoes. When she died in 1979 at the age of 98, she had been a
member of the Garden Club of Morristown for sixty-six years.
As we sipped ice tea and munched on Peggy’s delicious
sandwiches on the terrace overlooking the lake, we knew we were
all part of something special which had stood the test of time and
that we, and the Garden Club of Morristown, are ready for the
next century.
H.T.B.
The canopy of lindens on Peggy Krementz’s driveway photographed by
Liza Koven on the day of the lunch.
93
93
Garden Club of Morristown
Past Presidents
1913-1921
1920-1921
1922-1923
1923-1927
1927-1930
1930-1934
1934-1938
1938-1940
1940-1942
1942-1946
1946-1948
1948-1952
1952-1954
1954-1958
1958-1960
1960-1963
1963-1966
1966-1968
1968-1970
1970-1972
1972-1975
1975-1977
1977-1979
1979-1982
1982-1984
1984-1986
1986-1988
1988-1990
1990-1992
1992-1995
1995-1997
1997-1999
1999-2001
2001-2003
2003-2005
2005-2007
2007-2009
2009-2011
Mrs. Gustav E. Kissel
Miss Ella Mabel Clark
Mrs. Redmond Cross
Mrs. Frederic R. Kellogg
Mrs. John Caflin
Mrs. E. Kirk Haskell
Mrs. John W. Stedman
Mrs. William T. Kirk III
Mrs. John W. Stedman
Miss Marie L.G. Halsted
Mrs. Elliott Averett
Mrs. Robert Lloyd
Mrs. Robert Bourne
Mrs. George Munson
Mrs. Malcolm E. McAlpin
Mrs. Alexander L. Keyes
Mrs. Charles Dunbar
Mrs. John Millikin
Mrs. Josiah Macy, Jr.
Mrs. Richard B. Thomas, Jr.
Mrs. Richard Krementz, Jr.
Mrs. S. Hughes Garvin
Mrs. Kenneth W. Dougherty
Mrs. James C. Pitney
Mrs. Frederick Bartenstein, Jr.
Mrs. Alan M. Willemsen
Mrs. Stuart Brunet
Mrs. Daniel C. Will III
Mrs. Morgan J. Murray
Mrs. Peter K. Deeks
Mrs. E. Alexander Lazor
Mrs. James M. Porter
Mrs. Robert D. Pierson
Mrs. Johannes van Bergen
Ms. Alice Cutler
Mrs. Daniel Harding
Mrs. David T. Partridge
Mrs. Daniel T. Scott
94
94
Bibliography
Cavanaugh, Cam, Saving the Great Swamp, The People, The Power Brokers, and an Urban
Wilderness, Columbia Publishing Company, Inc., Frenchtown, New Jersey,
1978.
Cunningham, John T., Chatham Township, Images of America Series, Arcadia
Publishing/Tempus Publishing, Inc., Charleston, South Carolina 29401,
2001.
Rae, John W., Mansions of Morris County, Images of America, Arcadia
Publishing, Charleston SC, 1999.
Rae, John W., Morristown: A Military Headquarters of the American Revolution, The
Making of America Series, Arcadia Publishing, Charleston SC, 2002.
Rae, John W. and Rae, John W. Jr., Morristown’s Forgotten Past – “The Gilded Age”:
the Story of a New Jersey Town, Once A Society Center for the Nation’s Wealthy,
Published by John W. Rae, Morristown, New Jersey, 1979.
Shelton, Louise, Beautiful Gardens in America, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York,
1915.
95
95
Michelle King
7.
Darby Scott
Gail Jacobus 8.
Jeanne Will
9.
Susan Budd
Margo Packouz 10.
Lisa Chapman 11.
Chris Willemsen12.
Kim Dougherty
Susie Swayne 13.
Missy Partridge 14.
Susan Deeks
15.
Ann Ewig
Toosie Ansede 16.
Leslie Pye
17.
Patti Pierson
Pam Hirsch
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Michelle King
Darby Scott
Gail Jacobus
Jeanne Will
Susan Budd
Margo Packouz
Lisa Chapman
Chris Willemsen
Kim Dougherty
Susie Swayne
Missy Partridge
Susan Deeks
Ann Ewig
Toosie Ansede
Leslie Pye
Patti Pierson
Pam Hirsch
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
Maryanne Janson
Helen Brunet
Meryl Carmel
Ann Granberry
Pat Lazor
Bev Veale
Ann Granberry
24.
Sharon Warren
Pat Lazor
25.Veale
Lucia Holland
Bev
Sharon Warren
26.
Twinkle
Tong
Lucia Holland
27. Adrienne
Kirby
Twinkle
Tong
28. Kathy
Adrienne
KirbyShepperly
Kathy Shepperly
29.
Ann
Nash
Ann Nash
30. Corinne
Lee
Corinne
Lee
Xandra
van Bergen
31. Xandra
van Bergen
Hope Hazen
32.
Hope
Schuyler
RyonHazen
33. Carrington
Schuyler Ryon
Mimi
Pam
34.Harding
Mimi Carrington
Noel Foley
35.
36.
37.
38
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
Pam Harding
Noel Foley
Joan Powell
Peggy Krementz
Virginia Pierson
Joan Buck
41. Alexandra Mead
Alexandra
Mead
42. Joan McIlwain
Joan
43.McIlwain
Sue Woods
Debra Chambliss
Sue44.Woods
45. Cynny Babbott
Debra
Chambliss
46. Cynthia
Robinson
Cynny
Babbott
47. Katie
Porter
48. Bonnie
Lundberg
Cynthia
Robinson
49. Lisa Boles
Katie
50. Porter
Alice Cutler
51. Carolyn
Simpson
Bonnie
Lundberg
Lisa Boles
Alice Cutler
Carolyn Simpson
Who’s Who at the GCM Annual Meeting
May 15, 2013
Not present for photograph - Emmie Corbin, Lillie Debevoise, Anne Fritts, Betsy Healy, Kate Hein, Fran Hinckley, Helen
Hoyt, Liza Koven, Katie Laud, Nicky L'Hommedieu, Stuart Materne, Jane McKnight, Linda Mills, Pat Moody, Kathryn Mustaro,
Mimi Pitney, Janet Robertson, Kathy Seabrook, Peggy Segalas.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
Not present
for photograph
18. Maryanne
Janson - Emmie Corbin, Lillie Debevoise, Anne Fritts, Betsy Healy, Kate Hein, Fran Hinckley, Helen Hoyt, Liza Koven,
Katie Laud, Nicky L'Hommedieu, Stuart Materne, Jane McKnight, Linda Mills, Pat Moody, Kathryn Mustaro, Mimi Pitney,
Janet Robertson, Kathy Seabrook, Peggy Segalas.
96
Garden Club of Morristown Annual Meeting
May 15, 2013
Not present for photograph - Emmie Corbin, Lillie Debevoise, Anne Fritts, Betsy Healy, Kate Hein, Fran Hinckley, Helen Hoyt, Liza Koven,
Katie Laud, Nicky L'Hommedieu, Stuart Materne, Jane McKnight, Linda Mills, Pat Moody, Kathryn Mustaro, Mimi Pitney,
Janet Robertson, Kathy Seabrook, Peggy Segalas.
Thoughts on Gardening
To some of us, gardens and
gardening are among the
precious things in life.
A garden is a refuge, a place of quiet,
a retreat from the worries and
contentions of the world.
Gardening brings us peace, it
arouses a sense of wonder, it
gives us knowledge for its own sake.
Best of all, gardening brings forth beauty – that little
the little seed which produces the flower, with it its color,
its texture, its fragrance.
Just glorious – and what’s more, it’s fun.
Written in 1981 by Mrs. Mahlon Pitney (Anne),
who joined the Garden Club of Morristown in the early 1930’s.