The Cape Ann Garden Tour
Saturday, June 16, 2007
10: 00 AM to 4:00 PM

On Saturday, June 16, 2007, private gardens, located across Cape Ann, will be open to the public for a special one-day only viewing. The Cape Ann Garden Tour, sponsored by The Sargent House Museum, will give garden enthusiasts the opportunity to explore gardens not typically seen by the public.

This will be the ninth year The Sargent House has sponsored the tour, an event which benefits the museum and its programs. A variety of garden styles and venues are included to provide the visitor with a glimpse of the whimsy, charm and diversity of Cape Ann. From vast, professionally designed and maintained landscapes to pocket-sized gardens lovingly tended to by their owners, an unexpected mix of gardens make up this year’s ‘rain or shine’ event. Several gardens will be on view in Annisquam, Rockport, and Eastern Point, many providing lovely estate settings and ocean vistas.

One such garden, ‘a simple vegetable garden at the top of the hill,’ offers a wonderful vantage point from which visitors may enjoy views of Annisquam Cove and a historic bridge that settlers used to drive cattle across on their way to graze in Dogtown. The property also features a newly-constructed cottage, awarded the Gloucester Preservation Award for 2006.

Another garden on display features a lovely grassy field which leads to a collection of granite rocks and dramatic granite outcroppings with sweeping westerly views of Ipswich Bay. Visitors here will be greeted by the fox god Inari Sama, Japanese patron saint of inns, who keeps watch over the property.

The Sargent House Museum, whose own gardens will also be open for viewing as part of the tour, is housed in a 1782 Georgian style building overlooking the West End of Main Street. The Cape Ann Garden Tour not only brings in much needed funds for restoration of the Museum’s grounds and gardens, but also increases people’s awareness of the organization and its mission to preserve the site. Open to the public as a historic house since 1917, the Museum depends on the support and involvement of the local community to fund its activities. The Garden Tour, organized through the efforts of many, many people ‘ all of them volunteers ‘ has evolved into the Museum’s primary annual fundraising event.

Tickets to the Cape Ann Garden Tour are $20 and may be purchased in advance at The Sargent House Museum and downtown at The Weathervane, 153 Main Street, Gloucester. Tickets will also be available on the day of the tour, for $25. The tour is self-guided and carpooling is encouraged since parking is limited at many of the sites. For additional information, please call The Sargent House Museum at (978) 281-2432.

The Sargent House Museum
49 Middle Street
Gloucester, MA 01930
(978) 281-2432
sargenthouse@cove.com
Contact: Joan Ciolino, Museum Director