Home » Plants & Animals » Garden Design » Middleton Place - Page 2

Middleton Place - Page 2

© Kirk Johnson

It took a hundred slaves a decade to complete the construction work on the 65 acres of garden, but they weren't working on it year-round. They did the construction work during periods when they weren't needed in the fields and rice paddies. The terraces leading down to the lakes and the Ashley River are more characteristic of Virginian gardens, where they were known as "falls". These falls were always simply planted with grass, their owners appreciated the uncluttered lines that they added to landscapes, but they required a great deal of labor to construct. The falls and lakes of Middleton Place were extravagant displays of wealth and power. Heny Middleton was trying to show his English relatives that he knew how to live like a gentleman of style and fashion, but It is difficult to imagine the impression that his garden must have made on other colonists.

While the falls and butterfly likes have always made the dominant impression, the formal garden to the northwest of the house is also a major feature. It was originally studded with statues, but only one of these, a marble wood nymph, still remains.

Henry and Mary lived at Middleton Place until her death in 1761, adding two dependency buildings buildings known as "flankers" to each side of the house in 1755. After Mary's death, Henry lived at the Oaks and relinquished Middleton Place to his eldest son, Arthur - a signer of the Declaration of Independence The garden was carefully tended by his heirs until the Civil War. Rare plants were added, but the formal lines remained unchanged.

On February 22, 1865, Union troops set fire to the house. The main house and north "flanker" were destroyed, but the family was able to restore the south flanker and use it as their home. With the loss of their slaves, the family couldn't main such as vast garden, so it was neglected. In 1886, a massive earthquake drained the butterfly lakes and damaged the terraced falls. The garden seemed unlikely to survive.

In 1915, John Julius Pringle-Smith, a direct descendent of Henry Middleton inherited the property. Many books say that he began the restoration of the garden in 1916, but this was actually a labor of love done by his wife, Henringham. Over several years, with the help of some garden workers, Henringham painstakingly restored the garden. The Pringle-Smiths opened the garden to the public in the 1920's. The garden is now managed by the Middleton Place Foundation.

The copyright of the article Middleton Place - Page 2 in Garden Design is owned by . Permission to republish Middleton Place - Page 2 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.