About Us

The first meeting of the North Shore Garden Club was held at Mrs. Philip Dexter’s house in Manchester, MA on July 14, 1915. Fourteen ladies were present, and Mrs. Quincy Shaw was elected the first President. It was decided to have meetings every two weeks during the summer and once a month during the winter. Members took turns as hostess, showing her garden and presenting a paper no more than ten minutes in length.

From its inception, the Club’s focus has been to support and contribute to horticulture conservation and preservation on the North Shore of Massachusetts. While today’s Club emphasizes primarily the cultivation and arranging of flowers and shrubs, the early World War I and World War II-era Club also encouraged kitchen vegetable gardens and Victory Gardens. During wartime, the Club donated thousands of jars of vegetables and fruits to Beverly Hospital.

In 1917, the Club joined the Garden Club of America (GCA) AND, IN 1920, the seventh annual meeting of the GCA was hosted by our club. Members from across the country had an opportunity to visit our members’ gardens as well as the houses of historic Salem. At this meeting, our own Mrs. Stephen Crosby was elected to be the second President of the GCA.

Through the years our club has exhibited regularly at the New England Spring Flower Show, numerous GCA member club shows and GCA Zone shows, winning many ribbons and medals.

In 1945 we developed the Pingree Garden behind the Essex Institute in Salem with a master plan drawn by the Olmsted Brothers that made it possible to transfer the garden in prime condition to the Institute in 1958. Perhaps our most successful project was the design and installation of the Beverly Hospital Memorial Garden in the early 1970’s. The design was by Vincent Merrill and received much recognition, including a National Landscape Award presented by First lady Rosalynn Carter. Until 2004 we continued to fund and oversee the maintenance of this garden.

In 1982 the club began its association with the gardens at Long Hill. The former estate of Mr. and Mrs. Ellery Sedgwick is a property of The Trustees of Reservations, and its beautiful gardens are open to the public. In addition to making financial contributions to help support Long Hill, the club helps to maintain the property, sending member volunteers and provisional members to work in the gardens and assist with the property’s annual plant sale. Since 1994, the club has also presented workshops in floral design and other related projects at the Herrick House, an assisted living residence affiliated with Beverly Hospital.

The new century brought a renewed interest in garden history and conservation. During the past ten years, members have documented ten gardens for the Archive of American Gardens at the Smithsonian. In 2010, working with the Trustees of Reservations at Ravenswood Park, the club participated in the GCA’s Centennial Tree Project by protecting a stand of Magnolia virginiana, a threatened Essex County native on the Massachusetts Endangered Species List. Among its many conservation initiatives, the club has an ongoing interest in coordinating pollinator projects with several local organizations.

A century after its founding, North Shore Garden Club continues its mission. To mark its 100th anniversary, the club staged a GCA Flower Show- A Century to Celebrate on September 17, 2015. Glorious Floral designs, stunning photographs and a plethora of robust and colorful horticulture filled historic Willowdale Estate’s gracious rooms and garden patio. The celebration continued into the night with a festive Centennial Cocktail Party held under the stars. Additionally, members researched and published an illustrated history of “North Shore Garden Club 1915-2015: A Look Back at the Past Fifty Years” to complement the club history of the first fifty years, compiled in 1965 by Mrs. G. Colket Caner, one of the Club’s Presidents. Additionally, the club contributed to the Center for Plant Conservation to help preserve the Southern Lady Slipper, and the club had a Beverly Seamans sculpture of two rabbits installed in the gardens of Long Hill, as well as a specimen tree added to the Long hill landscape.

In 2018, the NSGC came up with an innovative way to support pollinators on the North Shore by distributing the seeds of native plant species using a centuries-old method of cultivation known as “seed balls”. Local school children helped by making seed balls from a mix of compost, claym water, and seeds. Once dry, they were launched using various tools into wetlands and ecologically sensitive conservation areas on the North Shore. The project was so successful it has been used as a model for other garden clubs.

In 2020, the NSGC introduced the “Lawn to Habitat Project” in Manchester, Massachusetts. The goal of this project is to transform area lawns into ecological pollinator meadows. The NSGC works with the Department of Public Works (DPW) to identify the appropriate site, to suggest plant material, and to plant it during the first year. Year two involves supervision by the NSGC and maintenance by the DPW; in year three, the town of Manchester assumes the full responsibility for the fledgling pollinator meadow. The meadow provides help for our pollinators along with education and inspiration for the town to create more meadows on its own.

As times change and members face different demands on their time, we continue to try to adapt our activities to meet the future- but our mission remains unchanged:

“Eternal Vigilance” is still our watchword.