The last part of Stan Hywet that I'll share are the gardens - last but not least!
I think an important feature to mention straight away is that most of these gardens (of the much reduced estate) were designed to be viewed from the house, or at least with those views in mind.
The first area of the gardens I'll share first though isn't actually visible from the house however. The walled English Garden is like a secret garden really, hidden from the house and main gardens. One enters through the this little outbuilding seen above.
Once inside the lush plantings and water features take you miles away.
Looking back towards the entry.
The walls of the garden almost appear to be ruins of an old house -but they were expressly built for Mrs. Seiberling, an avid gardener.
The Akron garden club, of which she was an active member, still takes care of this section of the garden.
I love how the brick walkways have aged over time.
At the rear of the garden is another fountain with this charming statue.
Walking back towards the house one can see how hidden this garden is in the trees.
The west overlook is opposite the lawn from the back of the house and once featured beautiful views over the estate. Now however this is the edge of the grounds and it (sadly) overlooks an uninspired sub division: a common occurrence with many of these old houses.
Underneath the overlook is entry into the reservoir which covers the length of the rear lawn: this was originally nearly a self sustaining estate afterall.
This Japanese garden lies just lower than the rear lawn.
Allees are to be found throughout the gardens. This birch tree allee leads one to the tea houses.
This simple pair of tea houses (gazebos really) flank a simple fountain and overlooks a sunken area popular for weddings.
A nearby VERY LONG grape arbor leads one to the greenhouses which have been recently rebuilt.
Acres of cutting gardens keep the house full of fresh flowers throughout the year.
The former carriage house, which also contained some staff apartments now is used as a giftshop, restaurant, and ticket center - located beside their surprisingly large parking lot.
The Plane tree allee makes the estate feel limitless when viewed from the Music room and terrace - When the house was built it was the country instead of suburban Akron!
A parting shot of a pretty spectacular ginger bread house of
Stan Hywet located in the music room. I hope you have a chance to one day visit Stan Hywet in Akron, Ohio, for yourself!
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