A whirlwind of reasons to celebrate at the Glebe House in Woodbury
In 2025, the Glebe House in Woodbury marked 100 years as a historic house museum. This year, as a Revolutionary-era site, it’s celebrating America’s 250th anniversary
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The Glebe House and Gertrude Jekyll Garden in Woodbury have many reasons to celebrate.
First in the nation — and the only one in North America — are just a few of the distinctions tied to this historic home.
In 2025, the Glebe House in Woodbury marked 100 years as a historic house museum. This year, as a Revolutionary-era site, it is celebrating America’s 250th anniversary. And next year, it will mark 100 years since the original design of its renowned Gertrude Jekyll Garden.
LoriAnn Witte is the executive director.
“Anniversaries like America 250 remind the entire nation that we do have a long history,” she said.
The Glebe House is known as the birthplace of the American Episcopal Church. It is where the very first American bishop, the Rev. Samuel Seabury, was elected — right here in Woodbury. Fans of “Hamilton” may recognize Seabury from the song “Farmer Refuted.”
The property is also home to a garden designed between 1926 and 1927 by Gertrude Jekyll, widely considered one of the greatest landscape designers of the 20th century. It is the only Gertrude Jekyll Garden open to the public in North America.
Witte said the garden has recently undergone an extensive restoration to reflect Jekyll’s original vision.
“And now the garden beds are where they should be, so when everything grows in and becomes established, it will have the look she intended,” she said.
She added that historic preservation is something worth celebrating.
“In 2025, we celebrated 100 years of being open to the public. This year, we celebrate the nation’s 250th, and next year, 100 years of Jekyll’s plan,” she said. “For us, it’s been a whirlwind of celebrations and something to be proud of.”
The Gertrude Jekyll Garden is one of more than a dozen sites taking part in Connecticut’s Historic Gardens Day on June 28.
A Revolutionary Cemetery Walk is also planned for July 18, followed by a reception at the Glebe House.
