Hollister House

I first learned about Hollister House when I picked up a copy of Rosemary Verey’s book, “The American Man’s Garden,” published in 1990.  The book was a sequel to her very popular earlier work, “The American Woman’s Garden” first published in 1984.  When I was beginning to formulate my thoughts on developing our own garden here at Juniper Hill, I was very interested in English gardens and especially how it might be possible to translate and incorporate English garden design concepts so that they could fit the New England landscape and yet not seem too out of place.  After all, we lived on a small New England farm in a small 1789 saltbox, not in an English manor house on a grand estate.  So, it was almost inevitable that I would be drawn to the words of Rosemary Verey, one of the most preeminent gardeners in England, who had devoted an entire book to gardens established by men in America.  And, it was also no surprise that I would immediately gravitate to the section of the book that Verey entitled “Country Gardens,” which included a chapter on the gardens at Hollister House in Washington, Connecticut.

Hollister House was built by Gideon Hollister II around 1760 but its place in American garden history began in 1979 when it was purchased by George Schoellkopf as a weekend retreat.  Schoellkopf was a successful New York City antique dealer with a shop on Madison Avenue who was looking for a country place to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Not long after purchasing the property, Schoellkopf made a trip to England where he fell in love with the design of many of the English gardens he visited, particularly those done in the arts and crafts style such as at Sissinghurst and Hidcote.  Those gardens were designed with strong structure but within their architectural backbones, colorful plantings were allowed to mix and grow loose and free.  It’s a style of gardening that Schoellkopf, through trial and error and self-teaching, would apply and continue to develop over the past four decades at Hollister House, first with help from Ron Johnson and later along with French artist and photographer, Gerald Incandela.  

The property at Hollister House sits at the crest of a small hill along a country road, five miles from the center of the small town of Washington, Connecticut.  Being just a short trip from New York City, garden enthusiasts will tell you that this area of Litchfield County, Connecticut is well known for having some of the most beautiful country gardens in America.  From the original siting of the 18th-century house, the land slopes down rather abruptly, following the meandering Sprain Brook and then up again to open fields.  Rather than try to garden on a slope, Schoellkopf wisely followed the lead of several of those English gardens he first visited, like Snowshill Manor for example, and created a series of terraces that would allow him to garden on more level surfaces.  He also incorporated one of the defining elements of English arts and crafts garden style by creating a series of garden rooms which are separated by walls, hedges and paths, much in the same manner made famous by Lawrence Johnston at Hidcote and Harold Nicholson and Vita Sackville-West at Sissinghurst.  He even had a brick wall built in one section of the garden just to add a little touch of romantic ruin.  The straight-line architecture of the garden incorporates a number of allees and axes that emphasize perspective while the transitions, as you move from one garden room to another, present an opportunity for surprise.