This week's new adventure took me to Mansfield, Ohio. Not a thriving metropolis! I actually lived there for about 9 months, while in retail management. Back then, it had a mall, and that was about it! Well, it did have Kingwood Center Gardens, but that's not something I cared about when I was 22 years old . . .
The history behind the place: Charles Kelley King came to Mansfield in 1893 to work for The Ohio Brass Company as an electrical engineer. He rose through the ranks and became Board Chairman and President. In 1912, he purchased 47 acres of property which is known as Kingwood Center Gardens today. When he died in 1952, his wishes were for his fortune to be used to create a public garden from the estate. The home is on the National Register of Historic Places.
My friends and I had a beautiful day to enjoy the spring foliage:
The history behind the place: Charles Kelley King came to Mansfield in 1893 to work for The Ohio Brass Company as an electrical engineer. He rose through the ranks and became Board Chairman and President. In 1912, he purchased 47 acres of property which is known as Kingwood Center Gardens today. When he died in 1952, his wishes were for his fortune to be used to create a public garden from the estate. The home is on the National Register of Historic Places.
My friends and I had a beautiful day to enjoy the spring foliage:
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| First stop was the mansion itself. A docent told us a little bit of the history and then we wandered around by ourselves. |
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| It was your typical early 20th century furnishings. |
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| One of the rooms had an artist's exhibit of paper flowers. I found this one to be the most stunning. It's hard to believe that it's all just paper! |
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| We walked down the front steps to enter the gardens. |
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| Most of the tulips were spent, but there was still plenty in bloom. I love these globular flowers. |
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| I was impressed with these pots, as it was entirely edible arrangements of lettuce. |
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| There was a beautiful courtyard that could be used for wedding receptions. |
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| This was the herb garden. At the entrance, there was a sign that said to refrain from tasting! |
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| The back of the mansion was even more impressive than the front. |
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| There was also a pond with ducks and peacocks just wandering around. |
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| This fellow put on quite a show for us, spinning around and around. That is, until a big wind came and blew him across the yard! He put his feathers down after that, which made me laugh. |
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| I am quite fond of succulents, so I was excited to look around this greenhouse. |
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| There was a shop with cute garden items and plants for sale. I was impressed by how good this chocolate mint smelled, so I purchased it. I've been using it in water and tea. Overall, it was a very good outing. |
Funny, isn't it, how you can live in a place, even for a long time, and never notice the local 'points of interest'? I lived in OurTown for over 25 years before I ever took a capitol tour. . .
ReplyDeleteIt is crazy how we miss out on so much close to home. Never went to the annual Soap Box Derby in Akron, even though people come from all over the world to compete. Looking for more nearby outings this summer!
DeleteBeautiful! I would have enjoyed the outing. That was neat that he wanted it to be preserved like that. Looks like it is well maintained too!
ReplyDeletebetty
It did seem to be very well maintained, so I think he'd be very happy. The docent said that some of his staff lived there until the 1980's when they passed away (he wanted his staff to continue to have a home after he died).
DeleteIt's great when someone dies and leaves some land for the general public's enjoyment. It looks like a wonderful garden. The paper flowers in the picture are so realistic. But poor peacock being blown away by the wind!
ReplyDeleteAren't those paper flowers amazing? I can't imagine the time put into a piece like that!
DeleteWOW...this place looks AMAZING! I remember when I was a kid, my mother installed curtains with valances very similar to the ones in the second photograph. Back then (in the 60's-70's), everyone had very "formal" type interior design.
ReplyDeleteOMG...those flowers are STUNNING, indeed! I can't believe they're made out of paper?!?
The gardens are exquisite. They look like something you'd see in Paris, France.
"That is, until a big wind came and blew him across the yard! He put his feathers down after that, which made me laugh." LOL! That's hilarious!!!
Yup, I would have purchased that chocolate mint herb as well. I bet it smells heavenly!
Thanks so much for sharing, my friend. Enjoyed! Hope you're having a relaxing Memorial Day! X
Those valances seemed to hold their popularity for many, many decades. I enjoyed the kitchen the most. They displayed some of the dinnerware and I have a few pieces of my grandmother's depression glass that was on display!
DeleteThanks, Ron! We had a fun Memorial Day weekend with family.
Chocolate mint sounds great. I love the peacock pictures, they are such pretty birds. The paper flowers are gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteI didn't even know there were so many varieties of mint. They also had a pineapple one that smelled so good.
DeleteSure looks like a sprawling space. We used to have peacocks on our property. They like to fluff up many a time to try and scare prey with their feathers, making them think they have tons of eyes.
ReplyDeleteThat's so cool that you had peacocks! I think I learned about the 'eyes' back in school, but had forgotten, so thanks!
DeleteSounds a lot like the Sonnenberg estate we visited a couple years back. We may have to find time to get out there, looks beautiful
ReplyDeleteI remember reading about Sonnenberg, but my spouse would have no interest. He doesn't make me go to sports museums, so it's a trade off.
DeleteWow. What a grand home! I love everything about this! I especially love that piece of art made entirely from paper! That looks like a wonderful place to visit. Passing it along to my kids for future destinations. :) Thanks!
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, there's not a ton of other things to do in that area, besides a 'famous' carousel downtown. We did stop at Grandpa's Cheese Barn on the way home, which is a big tourist trap. It was my second and hopefully last visit - LOL!
DeleteBeautiful gardens. I like the sound of chocolate mint, but I want to know how they get the chocolate taste into the mint.
ReplyDeletewww.thepulpitandthepen.com
I personally think it smells more like chocolate than tastes, but I like it!
DeleteWhat a fabulous location! I'm so glad you took these wonderful photos, Bijoux. I love the paper flowers and that peacock was a hoot!
ReplyDeleteThat peacock was pure entertainment.
DeleteI would enjoy visiting the home and the gardens, and seeing the peacock dancing in the wind.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your visit!
DeleteThis sounds like an awesome place!
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine had parents who grew herbs. She picked a leaf from the chocolate mint plant and a leaf from a Stevia plant, put the two leaves together and told me to eat them: "It tastes like a peppermint patty!"
She was right.
Oh that is so funny! I love peppermint patties!
DeleteGreat buildings and gardens...aww...peacocks have fancy colors...love it
ReplyDeleteAren't those peacocks just beautiful?
DeleteBeautiful gardens. I visited a place once where there were lots of peacocks roosting in the trees. Somehow I never imagined them airborne.
ReplyDeleteI've grown chocolate mint. It does smell wonderful. But be careful - mint is wildly invasive!
I was shocked when one of the peacocks jumped up on the fence and then down over the side. They are awkward birds!
DeleteI just re-potted the mint into a better container to put on my windowsill.