Photograph
by
T.
Reichard
52 nshoremag.com May/June 2014
Garden
ne
restoration
Springs Eternal
North Andover conser vation property Stevens-Coolidge
Place resurrects the spirit of its centur y-old perennial garden.
By Kiley Jacques
people versed in the riches of the
North Shore will know a thing or two
about The Trustees of the Reservations.
Composed of more than 100,000 indi-
viduals caring for nearly 25,000 acres and
100 properties throughout Massachu-
setts, The Trustees are stewards of our
land. And anchored on much of that land
are historic homes and gardens. The Ste-
vens-Coolidge Place is one such property,
and its character lies in its topography.
Hemmed by a sylvan border, the North
Andover estate once served as a summer
home for John Gardner Coolidge—a de-
Room with a View
The main house
sits adjacent to a
historic rose garden.
scendant of Thomas Jefferson and nephew
of Isabella Stewart Gardner—and his wife,
Helen Stevens Coolidge. Today, the estate
comprises 91 acres of grasslands, wet
meadows, and woodlands and includes a
30-acre farm, a Georgian-style main house,
a brick double-house and barn, a green-
house, a rose garden, a cutting garden, a
willow grove, a fruit orchard, and a recently
restored perennial garden—a piece of the
property that has received a good bit of
attention over the past four years.
The perennial garden's restoration
may have been inspired, at least in part,
by the success of a cutting garden planted
two years ago. It was added because it
KJ_NS MayJun 14 Coolidge.indd 52 3/27/14 4:42 PM
