Martha's Vineyard Museum

Table of Contents

Summary Information

Biography/Historical Note

Scope and Content of Collection

Administrative Information

Index Terms

Contents of Collection

Descriptive Summary

Repository	Martha's Vineyard Museum, Gale Huntington Research Library 59 School Street P.O. Box 1310 Edgartown, MA 02539 (508)627-4441
Call Number	RU 316
Creator	Martha's Vineyard Garden Club
Title	Martha's Vineyard Garden Club records
Date	1924-2010, undated
Extent	9 boxes + 1 oversize (4.856 cubic feet)
Language	The materials are in English.
Abstract	The records of the Martha's Vineyard Garden Club consist of minutes, reports, yearbooks, newsletters, scrapbooks, correspondence and photographic materials created by the organization.

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

This collection has a small amount of restricted materials. Requests to access restricted materials should be directed to the library's staff.

Use and Reproduction Restrictions

Requests to reproduce material from this collection should be directed to the library's staff. Reproduction fees may apply.

Acquisition Information

Fliers, program and yearbooks, 1977-1982, gift of the Margaret Eppley Estate in 1992. (Accession no. 1992.037). 50th anniversary program, gift of James Richardson in 2003. (Accession no. 2003.065). Other correspondence, yearbooks and programs, 1929-1958, were acquired from unknown sources.

An accrual of Martha's Vineyard Garden Club records was received from the President of the Martha's Vineyard Garden Club, Catherine Minkiewicz in 2010. (Accession no. 2010.048).

Publication Information

Martha's Vineyard Museum

Gale Huntington Research Library
59 School Street
P.O. Box 1310
Edgartown, MA 02539
(508)627-4441

Revision Description

 Finding aid revised during subsequent processing and machine-encoded in January 2015 by Nathaniel Janick January 2015

Processing Information

Finding aid prepared and machine-encoded by Nathaniel Janick in January 2015.

 Processing of this collection and creation of the original finding aid from 2013 was sponsored by the towns of Aquinnah, Chilmark, Oak Bluffs, Tisbury, and West Tisbury through the Massachusetts Community Preservation Act. Subsequent processing and machine-encoding of the finding aid was sponsored by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Biography/Historical Note

Established in Edgartown in 1924 by Mrs. T. M. R. Meikleham and ten charter members, the Martha's Vineyard Garden Club was the first conservation-oriented organization on the island. Early members rallied around horticulture and preservation efforts including; planting trees and gardens, improving schoolyards, surveying and maintaining trees on public property, removing caterpillars from island vegetation, banning billboards, preserving stone walls, creating victory gardens, ragweed and gypsy moth eradication, disseminating information on plant diseases, participating in the island agricultural fair, holding flower shows, advocating for zoning regulations and other educational programming. The club continues to actively initiate and support efforts to preserve and beautify the island landscape.

Beginning in 1937 a building at the West Tisbury Mill Pond served as the headquarters to the Martha's Vineyard Garden Club. The club purchased the property in 1942 and established an endowment for its preservation in 1982. The club continues to manage the old mill property today. In 1984 the Martha's Vineyard Garden Club joined four other non-profit environmental organizations in the creation of the Mary P. Wakeman Conservation Center Trust. The Club now uses the Wakeman Conservation Center building on Lambert's Cove Road for its monthly meetings. These events include presentations on a wide variety of conservation and horticulture topics. In addition, the greenhouse at the Wakeman Center is used to propagate plants for the club's annual, spring plant sale.

Scope and Content of Collection

The records of the Martha's Vineyard Garden Club consist largely of annual yearbooks published by the organization, 1929-1981, but also include a flower show program and several pieces of correspondence, fliers and anniversary programs. The yearbooks contain lists of members, officers and committee members, annual reports and schedules of events. Programs celebrating the club's 25th and 50th anniversaries include a historical chronology of the organization and lectures.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged by record form and therein loosely chronologically.