Bucket Brigade
In the fall of 1929, a small group of women met to form a garden club with a focused civic project. The club was formally organized on January 31, 1930 when nine women met at the home of Mrs. C. W. Wycroft to create policies and bylaws. Out of the first names proposed, the Shaker Trowel Club was favored by members, but the group settled on the Village Garden Club. Inspired by the Japanese cherry trees in Washington, D.C., the group aimed to beautify the Shaker Lakes region with flowering trees. In addition to planting trees, the Club met regularly for informative lectures by local horticulturists and experts and participated in annual flower shows.
"The purpose of the Club being discussed, it was agreed to concentrate on some creative work rather than to devote our meetings exclusively to speakers."
"The original committee did some of the actual labor or financed it - such as tying a rope to a pail and dipping water from Hampton Lake to water the tree..."
While the women often financed the labor at the grove, they were not afraid to get their hands dirty. Charter member Gladys Bill noted in a 1951 speech (above) that the original Cherry Tree Committee pulled water from Hampton Lake (now known as Horseshoe Lake) to water the grove. A Bystander clipping (left) from May 23, 1931 and a photograph from the same 1931 planting (below) show members of the Club planting a cherry tree in their fine clothes and furs with their bow-wrapped spade.
This study for the development of Hampton Lake (Horseshoe Lake) Park was completed by landscape architects Pitkin & Mott in 1932. Circles with dots indicated existing trees and open circles indicated proposed tree plantings. The small area with dotted circles on the south side of the lake notes the existing cherry tree collection planted by the Village Garden Club.
In its early years, the Village Garden Club organized and participated in many flowers shows. The below photographs are of prize-winning arrangements in the Club's Second Annual Flower Show hosted by Louise Marshall in 1932.
A 10th anniversary cookbook of "tried and true" recipes titled Soup’s On! was published to raise funds for the purchase and maintenance of trees and the dedication of a commemorative stone marker.
Although the cookbook includes many classic recipes, some are reflective of their time, such as a tomato soup cake.
This film was made in spring 1940 during the celebration of the Club's 10th anniversary, which was marked by a commemorative stone installed at the grove by the Cherry Tree Committee.
During World War II, many Village Garden Club members volunteered at the VA hospital and devoted their time to war projects, such as knitting afghans for local hospitals.
Several of the Club's minutes mention volunteering efforts, and an undated history from the Club's archives notes that the Cherry Tree Committee turned over $200 of its funds to the Club for "war work."
Traditional club activities returned after the war, and in 1950, the group decided that new trees would be planted in memory of deceased club members.
The 10th anniversary commemorative stone marker was installed on the south side of Horseshoe Lake in 1940, and the Cherry Tree Committee received permission from the City of Cleveland to place a rock on the north side in Cleveland Heights in 1955. Several of the Club’s minutes mention the attempt, but the 1955 annual report (right) indicates the project was ultimately unsuccessful.
