Ramsey County History – Summer 2011: “With Style, Grace, and Pride: The Gardens at the Minnesota Governor’s Residence”

With Style, Grace, and Pride: The Gardens at the Minnesota Governor’s Residence
Authors: Karine Pouliquen and Lori Schindler

The Summit Avenue mansion of lumber tycoon Horace and Clotilde Irvine is celebrated for its elaborate gardens. Built about 1910, the residence included one of the early twentieth-century Victorian-style gardens that was in vogue at the time. It featured glass houses to show off its exotic plants. Two of the Irvine children, Olivia and Clotilde, donated the family home and its gardens to the State of Minnesota in 1964 to serve as the official residence of its governors and their families. This article is complemented by drawings of the entire property and the gardens in front of and behind the mansion. Over the years, these gardens have been restored and improved so that their natural beauty is unmistakable. One of the leaders in this ongoing program has been the St. Paul Garden Club, especially since the 1980s. Distinguished guests of the governors have included Eleanor Roosevelt, Crown Prince Harald of Norway, Senator Edward Kennedy, and a well-known Minnesota native, Chief Justice Warren Burger. The Governor’s Residence and Gardens are periodically open for public tours.
PDF of Pouliquen article