1912

The Garden Club of Trenton was organized at the home of founding president Mrs. Frederic A.C. Perrine, with ten charter members. The original dues were fifty cents.

1913

The Club becomes affiliated with the Garden Club of America as a charter member at GCA’s first annual meeting in Philadelphia.

1917

With the start of World War I, the Club’s priorities changed. They planted shrubbery around the hostess house at Camp Dix at the cost of seventy-five dollars. For many years, donors augmented the “slender treasury” to support the program. Miss Anne MacIlvaine chaired the “Women’s Land Army” for Mercer County, with our club sponsoring Emergency Food Gardens and the Conservation of Food. The Club also raised funds for garden seeds and contributions for farm kits for devastated regions of France.

1920

The Club planted shrubbery at the Old Barracks.

1922

The Club joined the Princeton Garden Club in improving the grounds of the New Jersey Children’s Home Society.

1926

The Garden Club of Trenton was instrumental in the founding of the Federated Garden Clubs of New Jersey, now called the Garden Club of New Jersey. In May, at the invitation of the Club, the first annual convention was held at Mrs. Perrine’s Garden House.

1927

The Club launched a campaign in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce and local landscape architects to improve the surroundings of factories in the vicinity and beautify their grounds. These civic plantings culminated in the authentic restoration of the William Trent House Garden in 1938-40.

1930

Under the leadership of Mrs. Edward l. Katzenbach, the Club made a substantial contribution of $300 to the Garden Club of America’s fund for the preservation of the California’s redwood trees. The Club endorsed the State Bill Boards Bill.

1931

A beautiful copper beech tree was planted in front of Mercer Hospital in commemoration of the bicentennial of George Washington.

1932

The Club’s activities were darkened by the Depression, however they rose to the emergency by giving large sums of money to buy vegetable seeds for gardens for the unemployed. The Club also supported the efforts of the Governor to proclaim the first week in April “New Jersey Conservation Week.” The Club assisted in the publication of nature bulletins that were distributed to elementary schools throughout the state. In subsequent years, the tradition continued, from 2500 in 1932 to 10,000 copies in 1943. Seventeen other states followed New Jersey’s example of observing Conservation Week.

1933

The Spring Daffodil Show was first held at the “Little Stone House” in April, becoming an annual event which expanded until it was finally held at the State Museum with five thousand visitors in 1948 and 1949.

1937

The year marked the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Garden Club of Trenton. In April, the Garden Club of America bestowed both silver and bronze medals, and an “honorable mention” at the New York Flower Show for an exhibit of ferns in a natural setting. This was the first occasion that a club won two medals in the same show. At the November meeting, club members voted enthusiastically to sponsor the restoration of the Trent Garden. The anniversary year culminated in a party at the founding president’s home, featuring a comedy skit entitled “Say It With Flowers”.

1939

The Trent House was formally opened after a major restoration, with the Garden Club of Trenton leading the work on the Trent House Garden.

1942

The Club once again turned itself to the Nation’s interests with the outbreak of World War II. The president appointed a Defense Work Committee that cooperated with the Consumer’s Division of the Trenton Defense Council. The entire emphasis in club work for many succeeding months was placed on services for victory. In the summer of 1942 and in successive summers through 1945 many members devoted great energy to the planting of “Victory Gardens.”

1943

Greens collected by the Conservation Committee were made into fifty wreaths and donated to Tilton Hospital and the Station Hospital at Fort Dix. The Ways and Means Committee purchased seeds and plants for kitchen gardens at Fort Dix.

1944

Flowers contributed by club members were sent for twenty-one weeks of the winter or 1944 and spring 1945 to the Tilton General Hospital. The Garden Club of America recognized the work of the Club at Fort Dix as one of the outstanding war services throughout the country.

1945

The garden at the Fort Dix hospital spread over five acres and became known as “Tilton Farm.” The Garden Club Bulletin for January 1946 noted its phenomenal growth.

1946

The war’s end was soon reflected in the lighter mood at meetings, although the plight of millions abroad was not forgotten, with the club joining the “Tools for Europe” that grew in scale through 1948.