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| Dr. E.M.Mills Garden 1924 |
By Jim Wagner, ARS Consulting Rosarian
The E. M. Mills Memorial
Rose Gardens were dedicated on July 2, 1924. The dedication of these gardens was especially unique as Dr.
Edmund Mills, a Methodist minister and President of both the American Rose
Society and the Syracuse Rose Society (SRS), for whom the rose gardens were
being dedicated, was alive, present and took part in the actual dedication.
However, at the time these gardens were being planned, Dr. Mills had been very
ill and unaware of a rose garden being planned in his honor.
This was the third location
for the SRS rose gardens. SRS had
previously planted a rose garden in Kirk Park in 1911 and at Mt. Olympus, near
Syracuse University, in 1915. In
the early 1920s, the land for the Mt. Olympus rose garden, was being acquired
by Syracuse University for its School of Foresty (known now as SUNY ESF). Space
for these rose gardens in
Thornden Park became available after this Park had been purchased by the City
of Syracuse in 1921. A plaque on
this dedication is in the Gazebo in the center of these gardens.
Photos of this garden at the
time of its dedication in 1924 and one of it that was taken in the summer of
2008 may be seen on this page. In
the 1924 photo there is not any gazebo shown. This, then called a Pavilion, was added and dedicated on
June 22, 1925.
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| Dorothy Perkins Roses in Mills Garden, ca.1924 |
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| Photographer: Joe Gibson |
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| Dr. E.M. Mills Garden 2008 |
After 85 years there are at least two of the plantings that were
there in 1924. One of these, Lady Ursula, a dependable, pink Hybrid Tea rose that was first introduced
to the market place in 1908, is believed by some to be the oldest rose planting in this garden and is just a short distance
from the storage shed at the southeast corner of these gardens. Another is Dorothy Perkins, the Wichuriana
Climber, (J & P Co., 1901), which covered most of the fence along the south side of these gardens back then. Some
of these are still along this fence. Presently there are over 4000 roses of many different types and varieties
in this garden that need regular care from early April through mid-November. This care is a joint
effort between the Syracuse Rose Society and the Syracuse Department of Parks, Recreation, and Adult Services. On
Wednesday mornings from 8:00 to noon, 20 or so volunteers from SRS and others that may be interested go to these gardens to
take care of these roses including planting, weeding, fertilizing, deadheading, winter protection, etc. The
Parks Department maintains the lawns, helps on some of the heavier duty projects, and helps provide for obtaining new plantings
and supplies needed for maintenance of these gardens.
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| Lady Ursula Hybrid Tea Rose--from 1924 Catalog |
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