Garden diary of Eliza Haliburton Bridgham Appleton, East Providence, Rhode Island, 1907-1950, bulk 1907-1920

Historical/Biographical Note

Historical/Biographical Note

Eliza Haliburton Appleton (née Bridgham) was the daughter of architect, entomologist, and noted natural history illustrator Joseph Bridgham (1845-1915) and his wife, Florence Madeleine Bridgham (née Jenckes). She began the garden at age 25 in 1907 while still living in the family home on Bridgham Farm, a 46-acre property purchased by her great-great-great grandfather in 1781 in East Providence, Rhode Island. There were several houses and outbuildings on the property, and Eliza decided to create a flower garden for what she refers to as "The Studio." A novice gardener, she earnestly approached the task and started her garden diary in 1907. She carefully documented long lists of the flowers and shrubs she wanted, orders of seeds and plans from nurseries, and collected cuttings and transplants from family and friends. She recorded what she ordered, when materials arrived, where and when they were planted, and when they began to grow or flower.

In 1916, Eliza married Providence attorney Everard Appleton. The newlyweds moved into Haliburton Cottage, another house on the Bridgham Farm property. Around this time, she stepped back from gardening and the diary before returning to both in 1918. She again documented her flower purchases and plans for beds, followed by her list of seed and seedling purchases for her new venture, a vegetable garden. Among the multiple varieties of vegetables, fruits, and herbs were Brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, salsify, spinach, okra, peppers, pumpkin, various beans, melon, endive, and corn.

Eliza's first and only child was born in 1919. Around this time, she began to write in her diary less. She briefly wrote about plans for the garden in 1920 and then did not write in the diary again until 1939. By this point, Eliza and her family had moved into her family home on Bridgham Farm, what she refers to as the "Big House." In four entries, she discusses the changes in her life, events in the intervening 19 years, and her plans for the garden.

Eliza did not write another entry until 1950, where she wrote, "I'm too old to have a garden!" She died in on July 4, 1964. In 1980, the Bridgham Farm was placed on the National Register of Historic Places for the way it captured the rural landscape of Providence, Rhode Island, in the 18th and 19th centuries.