Roanoke Colonies Research Newsletter
Volume 8, Numbers 1 & 2 (November 2002/ May 2003)

Elizabethan Gardens at Fifty
by Brad Williams and Marshall P. Page, East Carolina University

Manteo’s Elizabethan Gardens celebrated its 50th anniversary on April 21, 2001. The event attracted capacity crowds, and for two days the grounds were alive with the sound of music, dance, and drama. Visitors were treated to slide shows, speeches, and a company of costumed actors mingling with guests.

Lost Colony alumni from several states joined with Renaissance specialists and local performers to highlight the weekend with a seven-hour tribute. The celebration’s performance company combined the talents of many groups under the direction of George Trautwein and lebame houston. Participants included students and faculty from East Carolina University performing highlights from The Taming of the Shrew, the Craven Historical Dancers, the Celebration Chorus, the Outer Banks Chamber Musicians, and the Dare Singers. Entertainment was partially funded by the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation, the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, and Coastal Concrete. The Elizabethan Gardens Board of Governors and the Garden Club of North Carolina cosponsored the event. Gardens chairman Lila Schiffman and executive director Carleton Wood were especially pleased with attendance at the free public events on Saturday. By noon on the first day, 2,800 people had passed through the gatehouse to explore the 10.5 acres.

Saturday concluded with a special Garden Club members dinner under a tent on the Great Lawn. Period-dressed performers entertained diners as they ate in the tradition of Elizabethan courtly life. A tribute ceremony and brunch was held on Sunday to honor past contributors to the success of the gardens. Miss Barbara Hird acted as mistress of ceremonies.

The Gardens were conceived as a memorial to the English colonists of the sixteenth century. Tourists, nature lovers, and horticulturalists come to visit and witness the wide variety of native and imported plants, trees, and wildflowers. The design is not Elizabethan in particular but rather an artistic memorial with varying influences.

A great deal of preparation goes into the year-round appeal of the grounds. Dogwoods and azaleas bloom through the spring, joined later by heirloom roses, crape myrtles, and magnolias. Hydrangeas and summer annuals carry the garden during the peak of tourist season. The sprawling trees are another favorite—one large old oak is believed to have been standing when the Roanoke colonies were nearby.

The concept of the Gardens was born on a summer night in 1950, after Sir Evelyn Wrench attended a performance of The Lost Colony. An inspired Wrench suggested to his companions that an Elizabethan garden be built to memorialize the historical events upon which the drama was based. The idea was presented to The Garden Club of North Carolina, and in the spring of 1951, the project began. Expectations were quickly raised when Judge John Whitney was persuaded to donate a collection of ancient Italian statuary from his Georgia estate. Included were a fountain, well’s head, birdbaths, sundials, and benches. The Roanoke Island Historical Association (RIHA) granted a 99-year lease for 10.5 acres adjoining the Waterside Theatre. From 1951 to 1960, when the garden formally opened, Garden Club members patiently gathered plants, ornaments, and financial support. Paul Green, creator of The Lost Colony, contributed an impressive statue of Virginia Dare.

The 50th anniversary celebration was missing one invaluable part of its legacy. Louis Midgette, Sr., superintendent of the Elizabethan Gardens from 1958 to 1987, died on August 29, 2000. Midgette served the Gardens in every manner possible, from gardener to guide to director. Louis also served as Chairman of the Dare County Board of Education for 22 years. He won the Skipper Bell Award in 1998 from the RIHA for his outstanding support of The Lost Colony. In a 1997 article in The Coastland Times, Midgette commented on his devotion to the gardens: “Every plant is a memory of another wonderful person. You have to love this place to care for it properly, and I do and I did.” Funeral services were held at the Gardens.

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