The Ridgefield Garden Club first installed the Memorial Garden at Ballard Park in 1971 as part of the club’s renovation of the area immediately east of the greenhouse. When Elizabeth B. Ballard died in 1964, she bequeathed five acres of her property to the town for Ballard Park. She instructed that her house be torn down. The greenhouse remained in the family. In January 1965, Elizabeth B. Ballard’s daughter, Elizabeth Doubleday, offered the use of the greenhouse and about an acre of land around it to the Ridgefield Garden Club. The club immediately began fundraising efforts to update the greenhouse. Then in 1971, under the guidance and design work of club member Elizabeth Abernathy Hull, the club began to renovate this area, naming it the Memorial Garden, a memorial to deceased club members.
The garden's design has changed many times over the years. Today, the garden is minimally planted but includes a large cast iron urn, original to Elizabeth B. Ballard's Graeloe estate, as its stunning centerpiece. The urn, which had been in town storage for decades, was moved to the Memorial Garden in 2024. It sits atop what was once a small fish pond in Mrs. Ballard's time, and then a fountain installed by Ridgefield Garden Club in 1972. The club plants the urn year-round for the enjoyment of Ridgefield residents and visitors.
The garden's design has changed many times over the years. Today, the garden is minimally planted but includes a large cast iron urn, original to Elizabeth B. Ballard's Graeloe estate, as its stunning centerpiece. The urn, which had been in town storage for decades, was moved to the Memorial Garden in 2024. It sits atop what was once a small fish pond in Mrs. Ballard's time, and then a fountain installed by Ridgefield Garden Club in 1972. The club plants the urn year-round for the enjoyment of Ridgefield residents and visitors.
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HISTORY
In 1923, the Ballard’s installed a small goldfish pond in this area that is now the Memorial Garden. This undated photograph from the Ridgefield Historical Society show Ethel Wallington Rogers, the daughter of longtime Ballard caretaker Frank Wallington, sitting at the goldfish pond. (Credit: Ridgefield Historical Society) |
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RENOVATION AND RESTORATION
This is how the space looked in 1969 before Ridgefield Garden Club began the renovation.
This is how the space looked in 1969 before Ridgefield Garden Club began the renovation.
By May, 1972 the club had cleaned the area, removed old plant material, leveled the pool edge and wall copings, and installed new flagstone to replace the broken pieces. The club groomed some of the existing plants and added others. The club also purchased and placed a tulip lead fountain in what was formerly the Ballard goldfish pond.
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The Memorial Garden and Fountain in 1978.
Gardens are ephemeral, changing over time. This has certainly been the case with the Memorial Garden.
In 2020, The Ridgefield Garden Club capped the fountain because it had become too dangerous and was beyond repair.
The club has created a simple, quiet and reflective garden.
The club has created a simple, quiet and reflective garden.