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This is an
easy, flat walk of just under a mile, which includes more than forty
labeled specimens, from very common to very unusual. The map makes
it easy to do all or part of the trail. Because it is a loop you
are never far from the beginning. The habitat varies form
open lawn to woodland to meadow. Many of the trees were planted (some
going back about 100 years), but some grew here naturally.
In 1896 the Board of
Parks Commissioner hired Theodore Wirth to be superintendent of
Elizabeth Park. Working together, the Olmsted Firm and Mr. Wirth
planned the road and pathways, built bridges and created the pond.
They hired the Lord & Burnham Company to build the greenhouses in
1898. Wirth planned and planted the Rose Garden and opened it in
1904.
During this time Mr.
Wirth caused many new trees to be planted. The property has been
transformed from a bucolic country estate to a municipal botanic garden
including many fine trees and shrubs. The Connecticut Botanical
Society has designated several of the trees as state champions, the
largest of their species in Connecticut. |