The Friendship Gardens

A Walk through the Friendship Gardens


My Recent trip home was a nice break from dancing, which offered me time for reflection:
Recently I had to take an unexpected trip home to Rhode Island. It was an sudden break from dancing, which came at a most inconvenient time. In light of delaing with the unexpected emergency, I found the some time at home for relaxation. Even the darkest cloud has it's silver lining. I had a restfull trip at home with family and friends, and even found time to visit one of my favorite places, the Friendship Gardens.



The Friendship Gardens were originally constructed as part of the Works Progress Adminstration during the 1930's under President Franklin Roosevelt. The gardens were designated on land in Slater Park, in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. The gardens were designed as a Shakespearean Garden, containg every variety of flower mentioned in Shakespeare's works. A marvel of it's time, the gardens were unique by design, and attracted visitors from around the world. It was an unusal place in it's day, and located in the most unlikely of places, sticking out like a diamond in the rough of an old mill town.



The garden's designer was Lawrence Corente. He envisioned a garden with moats and flowering water. Birtch Tree bridges connected a series of small islands, each unique with plantings and water fountains.

Time has past since the gardens heyday, and years of neglect have taken their toll on this once beutiful destination, but it's still a fun place to walk through during my time at home, and on this recent trip it was a nice quiet place for reflection. It was fun to walk through the crumbled ruins of what was once the most beutiful spot in New England. Long gone are the flowers and plantings of yesteryear, but the cobblestone walls and remains of the water fountains are still in clear view. Here's a look at how the gardens appear today. The gardens appear today as a sort of haunted labyrinth. A walk through the gardens today will lead you through  an intricate combination of weeded paths and muddy passages in which it is difficult to find one's way out. It's still fun though, a perfect place to ponder life's challenges, and the passage of time.









 

Update in June 2014

I recently discovered a 1936 newspaper clipping, which listed many ( If not all ) of the plants that were mentioned in Shakespeare's works.

They are:

Anemone

Balsam

Bluebell

Box

Broom-flower

Camomile

Carnation

Clover

Columbine

Cowslip

Crocus

Crow-flower

Crown-imperial

Cuckoo flower

Daffodil

Daisy

Diana's buds

Fennel

Fern

Flower-de Luce 

Gillflower

Gorse

Harebell

Holly

Honeysuckle

Hyssop

Ivy

Laurel

(True laurel was not know in Shakespeare's time)

Lady-smocks

Lark's heels

Lark's spur

Lavender

Lily

Long purples

Mallow

Mandrake

Marigold

Majorum

Mint

Mistletoe

Monkshood

Myrtle 

Pxlip

Pansy

Pomegranate

Poppy

Primrose

Rose

Rosemary

Rue

Samphire

Savory 

Sweet hym

Sweet marjoram

Spear grass

Thyme

Violet

This newspaper article was pieced together and is not complete:

The article is probably from the 1936 Pawtucket times, and is undated 

Update, in July 2014, I was fortunate enough to tour the Shakespeare Gardens in Central Park, NYC. It had a more natural format, compared to the manicured islands of the Friendship Gardens.