Glen Magna Farms facts for kids
Glen Magna Farms is a beautiful old country estate in Danvers, Massachusetts. It's like a big, fancy old house with amazing gardens! Today, the Danvers Historical Society owns it, and you can visit it every day. They suggest a small donation to help keep it nice. You can even take a guided tour of the house and gardens from May to July, which sometimes includes a packed lunch!
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A Look Back: The History of Glen Magna Farms
How Glen Magna Farms Began
The story of Glen Magna Farms started during the War of 1812. A rich merchant from Salem, Massachusetts, named Joseph Peabody, bought a 20-acre property with a house. Over time, he bought more land, and the estate grew much larger, reaching about 330 acres!
Expanding the Estate
Later, in 1893, Joseph Peabody's granddaughter, Ellen Peabody Endicott, decided to make the house even bigger. She hired a famous architecture company from Boston called Little, Browne & Moore to help. In 1926, Ellen was even given a special award, the Hunnewell Gold Medal, for the beautiful plants and gardens she created at the estate.
Her son, William Crowninshield Endicott, Jr., also worked to make the grounds even better. In 1901, he did something very cool: he moved a historic building called the Derby Summer House to the property. This building was designed way back in 1794 by a famous architect named Samuel McIntire.
Preserving the Estate
In 1963, the Danvers Historical Society bought the main 11 acres of the property. They wanted to restore it and make sure it would be saved for everyone to enjoy. Much of the rest of the original estate, about 165 acres, is now a public park called Endicott Park.
What You Can See at Glen Magna Farms Today
Today, you can visit the grounds of Glen Magna Farms to see its beauty and attend special events. Here are some of the cool things you can find there:
- The amazing Derby Summer House with its own enclosed rose garden. This garden was designed by Herbert Browne.
- A pretty pergola (a garden archway) covered with purple wisteria flowers.
- A lovely flower garden with a small fountain. You'll see colorful geraniums, peonies, lilies, hostas, and roses.
- An old-fashioned central garden that feels like stepping back in time.
- A shrubbery garden filled with different plants like rhododendrons, hemlocks, bright yellow forsythia, azaleas, fringe tree, dogwood, and weeping beech trees.
- You can also explore a carriage road and find various statues placed around the grounds.
Images for kids
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Garden fountain
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