Reader Rock Garden ( SE )
325 25 AV SE
(MANCHESTER INDUSTRIAL)
Area: 16.5 hectares
Reader Rock Garden Historic Park is one of the city's most unique cultural landscapes and the first Legacy Park to open. Its restoration was honoured with a Calgary Heritage Authority Lion Award in Landscape Preservation, earning official designation as a Provincial Historic Resource.
Open from sunrise to sunset, the historic garden is a tribute to one man's passion for plants and beauty. William Roland Reader was the Superintendent for Calgary Parks from 1913 – 1942 who transformed a bare hillside into an internationally-acclaimed garden.
During the turn of the century, it was common for horticulturists to collect alpine plants on their travels and create gardens as living artifacts of their journeys. Reader actively engaged in this practice and for thirty years the Garden trialed over 4000 different plant species, making it one of the few significant gardens in western Canada. Reader used the Garden as a showplace to educate people about the gardening potential of the prairie/foothills region of Alberta, particularly Calgary.
Lovingly rehabilitated according to Reader's original plans, the garden blooms from mid-March to mid-November. The reconstructed Arts and Crafts style house features a café and classroom space for educational programs.
Reader Rock Garden ( SE )
You can search for availability for the following programs at this facility.
* Clicking on the links will load the Recreation guide and take you away from the current map location.
Park Features
- Café
- Historical flower/rock garden
- Washrooms
- Benches
- Walkways
- Wheelchair access is located east of the house/café
History
Reader and his plant collection was known internationally and the quality of the plants and seeds were recognized by the most prestigious horticultural agencies in the world, including Kew Gardens in London, the Botanical Gardens at Harvard, and the Royal Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh. While the bulk of the Garden was essentially completed by the end of the 1920s, Reader continued collecting and experimenting with plant material until his death in 1943. One year later the Garden was named in his honour and was opened to the public as a City park.
Historical Timeline
1875 - William Roland Reader born in London, England.
1890-1892 - The town of Calgary buys the land and plans for Union Cemetery.
1912 - The Superintendent's Cottage is constructed at the top of Union Cemetery.
1913 - William Roland Reader becomes the third Superintendent, moves into the Cottage at Union Cemetery and begins to create the Garden.
1920's - Reader and the quality of his plants and seeds begin being recognized around the world.
1930's - Variety of important visitors, including Viscountess Byng, Lady Elphinstone, and H.R.H Princess Alice visit the Garden.
Reader starts compiling formal versions of his unpublished manuscript, The Herbaceous Perennial Garden together with Annotated Catalogue of Herbaceous Plants: introduced by and growing in the garden of W.R. Reader, Calgary's Parks Superintendent.
1942 - Reader retires after 29 years as Parks Superintendent.
1943 - Reader dies 26 days into retirement at the age of 67 and is buried at Union Cemetery.
Special Parks and Playground committee recommend to to the Mayor and Council that the Rock Garden be opened to the public and be designated "The Reader Rock Garden".
1944 - Cottage is demolished and replaced with a circular lawn area and large flower bed.
1950-1990 - Garden goes through periods of neglect and revival.
2003 - The Reader Rock Garden is awarded a grant from Infrastructure Canada - Alberta Program (ICAP) to restore the Garden and Cottage.
2006 - Restoration of the Cottage and phase one of the Garden is complete and opened to the public.
2008 - Restoration project completed.
