Gardening -
English Gardens
by Priscilla Haug
Stroll
through English gardens in this gallery of
Victorian photographs taken in the late 19th
century.
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During the Victorian era, many magnificent
gardens were located within traveling distance from the
center of London; because these gardens were accessible by
steamboat, omnibus or steam railroad, their role as a public
attraction grew. The gardens were undulated with carriage
drives around and through the grounds; with broad graveled
walks in various directions, opening long vistas through
well grown trees—some in rows, but generally irregularly
planted with plenty of room for the full development of each
and every tree. At some locations, such as Kew
Gardens,
numerous varieties of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants were
plainly labeled. This series of photochrom color images,
featured at the Library of Congress, provides a glimpse of
these glorious nineteenth century gardens sprinkled
throughout England during the late Victorian era. |
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Kensington Gardens, the
fountains, London, England, c1900.
[Detail of image
from the
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08579]
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Kensington Gardens, one of the Royal Parks, has 275 acres of
formal avenues of magnificent trees and ornamental flower
beds. The Gardens are located at Kensington
Palace, the choice of William III and Mary II for their
London home. Queen Victoria was born in Kensington Palace
and lived there until she became queen in 1837. Queen
Victoria commissioned the Italian Gardens and the Albert
Memorial. Outside Kensington Palace stands a statue of Queen
Victoria sculpted by her daughter, Princess Louise, to
celebrate 50 years of her mother's reign. |
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Valley Gardens, Harrogate,
England, c1900.
[Detail of image
from the
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08423]
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The
Valley Gardens in Harrogate, England are listed as an
English Heritage Grade II and cover 17 acres. They are
famous for their mineral springs. Their noted historical
structures, such as the Sun Pavilion and Colonnades still
stand. |
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The Gardens at Bournemouth,
England, c1900.
[Detail of image
from the Library
of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08039]
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Bournemouth is a seaside resort in southern England. The
city dates from 1810 but did not grow rapidly until the
railway reached Bournemouth in 1870. In 1880, the
population of this resort town was near 17,000, and then
more than tripled by 1900. During the late Victorian era,
Bournemouth was famous for its glass Winter Gardens, built
in 1875 and the Theater Royal built in 1882. Another
attraction was the Pleasure Gardens laid out in the 1870s. |
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The Gardens at Bournemouth,
England, c1900.
[Detail of image
from the
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08040] |
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Pittville Gardens,
Cheltenham, England,
c1900.
[Detail of
image
from the Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08159] |
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Pittville Gardens were completed
in 1827 as the backdrop for Joseph Pitt’s magnificent new
Pittville Pump Room where visitors could "take the waters."
The gardens included a large lake with beautiful stone
bridges. |
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Kew
Gardens, the museum, London, England, c1900.
[Detail of image
from the
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08589] |
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Kew Gardens, known today as the
Royal Botanic Gardens, are located on the River Thames in
southwest London, England. Kew Gardens was originally a private
fruit and vegetable garden belonging to the Prince of Wales,
the father of George III. The dowager princess of Wales, the
mother of George III, began to improve it as a botanical
garden and pleasure ground about 1760.
Kew received additions from time
to time, so that by the late nineteenth century it contained
270 acres. Kew Gardens became public in
1810 but suffered a decline from 1820-1840. In 1840 the
gardens were presented to the nation as a royal gift and
placed under the control of Her Majesty’s office of public
works. Under Queen Victoria’s patronage, Kew
Gardens flourished and by the
late nineteenth century, the Garden was said to be one of
the finest and most complete botanical collection and
arboretum in the world. |
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Whitworth
Gardens, Darley Dale, Derbyshire, England, c1900.
[Detail of image
from the
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08342] |
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Borough Gardens from south,
Dorchester, England, c1900.
[Detail of image
from the
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08349] |
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The land for
the Victorian Borough Gardens, located near the center of
Dorchester, was purchased in 1895. The center structure
shown is still used today. |
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Buxton, the
gardens, Derbyshire, England,
c1900.
[Detail of image
from the
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division:
LC-DIG-ppmsc-08293] |
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The spa town of Buxton was
famous for its natural warm waters and their supposed
curative powers. |
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Gardening Info:
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