You Can Tour The Gardens Where Jackie O Made Her Debut, So Text Your BFF Who’s A Fan
If you haven’t been to to Green Animals Topiary Garden in Portsmouth in a while, you’ll want to pencil it into your Summer 2019 agenda.
Sure there are scenic paths and herb, vegetable, & flower gardens (Hellooo, super famous topiaries! For the record, it’s the oldest topiary garden of its kind in the entire United States.) to explore on the 7 acre estate overlooking Narragansett Bay, but did you know that there’s a Jackie O. connection?
*PS ~ They also grow over 1K pounds of veggies a year that are then donated to local charities benefiting women and children. (Something Jackie would def approve of. 👏👏👏)
Yes, the surroundings are stunning and it’s a fantastic spot for reconnecting with the natural world.
Especially important if you're suffering from a serious case of work + life overload right now.
And there’s that Jackie Kennedy Onassis connection, for all you fans of the late First Lady turned style icon and then, book editor in NYC during the late 1970’s thru the early 90’s.
Alice Brayton - the daughter of Thomas E. Brayton, who purchased the property back in 1872 as a summer place for his family - apparently loved to entertain.
And it was she who during the 1947-48 season hosted a coming out party for the then Jacqueline Bouvier, the deb who would go on to meet and marry the 35th President of the United States. Kind of a big deal, right? (Alice and her manse and gardens also played host to other famous people over the years, including another First Lady, Mamie Eisenhower.)
So, throw on those oversized sunnies (Everyone needs at least one pair in their sunglasses rotation.) - and maybe some white jeans, another of Jackie’s signatures -and motor on over to GATG this summah.
For more details, go to newportmansions.org. For the record, it’s not as opulent as most of the other properties under the Newport Mansions umbrella, but when Alice passed away in 1974, she did leave the estate to The Preservation Society of Newport County.