'Spectacular Gardens' Topic of Avon Garden Club Event

AVON, CT — The Garden Club of Avon will host a presentation Monday, Oct. 19, exploring the town's early history and the story of a horticulturalist whose elaborate gardens once attracted visitors from throughout the Hartford area.

The program, titled "The Enterprising Horticulturalist," will feature Scott Lewis, author of "Avon Connecticut's First Century, Visionaries and Victims."

The presentation will take place at the Church of St. Ann's Father Bennett Hall in Avon, 289 Arch Road.

Garden club members will meet at 11:30 a.m., with guests arriving at noon. The program will include a light lunch.

Lewis will share stories of people who helped shape Avon, including Sherman Eddy, an enterprising horticulturalist who created elaborate gardens in town during the 1920s.

According to the club, Eddy's gardens were so popular that people traveled from across Hartford County to see them.

The gardens reportedly rivaled those of Theodore Pope Riddle, a prominent figure in the region's horticultural history.

Lewis, an Avon resident, serves as treasurer of the Avon Land Trust, where he helps build and maintain hiking trails.

A descendant of signer of the Declaration of Independence Josiah Bartlett of New Hampshire, Lewis also serves as treasurer-general for the Descendants of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, a national genealogy society.

Before retiring in 2023, Lewis was a senior vice president at The Hartford, where he served as controller and chief accounting officer from 2013 to 2023.

Reservations are required, and the guest fee is $15, payable at the door by cash or check. Checks should be made payable to Garden Club of Avon. Reservations must be made by Oct. 18. For information or reservations, contact Linda Mierzejewski at thegardenclubofavon@gmail.com.