by Becky Gallery

An oasis of color from early spring through the summer, the gardens in Harpswell Historic Park are maintained by members of the Harpswell Garden Club. Several garden beds are dedicated to members of the club. The small park was originally named for Anne Frances Hodgkins, the club’s president from 1948-1950. Miss Hodgkins was influential in the club’s restoration of the Union Church (553 Harpswell Neck Road), the restoration of the Town Meeting House begun in 1958 and the design and installation of the Memorial and Friendship Gardens in Brunswick. These gardens were established in 1968 and 1972, respectively, in cooperation with the United States Navy on the grounds of the chapel at Brunswick Naval Air Station.The chapel is now the home of Brunswick Naval Aviation Museum and the gardens are still maintained by members of the Harpswell Garden Club.

Miss Hodgkins was “a force to be reckoned with” according to the late Admiral Harry Rich, who worked with Miss Hodgkins and Jeanne Gilliam in planning the Friendship Garden. Anne’s leadership in Harpswell’s garden club extended to the community, making an impact still felt in Harpswell.

Jeanne Gilliam, part of the planning group for Friendship Garden, is remembered with Jeanne’s Garden, nestled among trees. This quiet area features a stone bench shaded by magnolia and dogwood trees that bloom every spring.

Jeanne’s Garden is also adjacent to Currier’s Garden. Dr Currier McEwen retired to Harpswell in 1970, after having vacationed here for many years. Born on April Fool’s Day in 1902, Dr McEwen made an impact in the medical community, serving as Dean of Medicine at New York University School of Medicine, at the time the youngest Dean of Medicine in the United States. He was well-known for his work in rheumatology, making many contributions to the study of the disease. He is also renown for his work in hybridizing Siberian and Japanese irises. Several dozen of his irises are now featured in the Dahlia and Iris Garden at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens.

Currier’s Garden was dedicated on June 22, 2002 in Harpswell Historic Park. It features a number of irises he developed. His daughters Ann and Kathy are both members of Harpswell Garden Club, as is daughter-in-law Diane, and all three help maintain the club’s gardens. Currier died in 2003 at the age of 101.

The newest garden is dedicated to Ruth Weeks. Ruth served as club president from 1966-1967. She continued to be an active member of the garden club until her death in May, 2020. Harpswell Garden Club had received a generous donation in her memory, and determined that the best way to honor both her love of gardens and her devotion to schools and libraries would be to install a garden leading to the one-room schoolhouse that sits on the grounds. Work on Ruthie’s Garden was begun in 2021 and the garden was dedicated to Ruth’s memory in May, 2022. It features many perennials and shrubs in her favorite palette of colors: pink, blue and purple.