Fort Lauderdale Garden Club

THE HISTORY OF THE FEDERATED GARDEN CIRCLES OF FORT LAUDERDALE, INC. Originally typed in October 1974


The great hurricane of September, 1926, left Fort Lauderdale stripped of plants and trees. Utter loss and helplessness was felt by the entire town. It was the need to bring the people to the point of wanting to restore and replant, that created the first Garden Club. H.C. Lozier and Miss Lucille

Quinn called a meeting in the Quinn home at the suggestion of Miss Lois Hay, Society Editor of the Fort Lauderdale Daily Paper. Both men and women interested in replanting the little settlement formed the nucleus of the Federated Garden Clubs of Fort Lauderdale. A group of forty members met bi-month. Each member brought extra plants to share, and gradually the yards and parks began to bloom again. By 1941 Mrs. A. J. Beck had a club library flourishing in her home. In 1946 Mr. Hugh Taylor Birch turned a part of his estate over to the Florida State Park Board for a park. Mrs. Eugene Smith, President of the Garden Club at that time, immediately contacted Mr. Lewis Scoggin, the Director of State Parks in Tallahassee, requesting that a site be set aside in the Park for a Garden Center. The site of our present Garden Club was a culmination of the combined efforts of Garden Club members, the Director of State Parks and the Birch State Park Superintendent. Mr. Glenn F. Bates worked with Dr. David Fairchild and was responsible for many plant stock developments. He generously shared his specimens with Garden Club members and shared his plant knowledge to all. Our Garden Center is named in his honor. By 1949 the Garden Club had expanded to 150 members. Local beautification became an important part of the Club’s program. Trees that stand today were planted in the North West section, around the schools and next to the Florida East Coast Railway then in the center of town. Many of the roadways, as well as the Evergreen Cemetery in the South East section, were planted by the Club. The beautification program also included the planting of Royal Palms along Las Olas Boulevard. The present 427 membership, realizing their heritage, have pledged to continue the work for which their organization was founded …. GARDENING. If you wish any information about joining the Federated Garden Circles of Fort Lauderdale, Inc., please phone Mrs. H. G. Frake at 763-…...

Oct. 1974