Fairfield -- The Harborage

The Harborage was built in 1843 on the site of the homestead of merchant and politician, Oliver H. Perry; and remained in the Perry family until 1962. The house was known in its day as "The Sycamores" and "The Harborage." The garden comprises a large front lawn sloping down to Southport Harbor with lawns and borders behind the house surrounding terraces, paths, outbuildings and a pool with a woodland garden at the rear. In 1968, Alice Orme Smith built a flagstone terrace with a surrounding low wall at the rear of the house to inlcude an existing giant white pine and a dogwood tree. A freeform pool and waterfall were built beyond a rock ledge on the rear lawn between 1985 and 1990. In 1991, the present owners worked with Sylvia Erskine to design the layout of the garden as it exists today. The arbor vitae hedge along the front picket fence was removed and several crabapple trees were planted. A bluestone walk was built joining the house with the cottage, carriage house and garage. In 1993, the adjoining 1.2 acre lot beyond the garage was purchased and laid out as a woodland garden. The garden has evolved with the addition of a sunken courtyard, fountain, and the removal of the giant White Pine on the terrace.

Persons and organizations associated with the property include: Oliver H. Perry and family (former owners, 1843-1950); Charlotte Perry (former owner, 1950-1962); Lawrence Hughes (former owner, 1962-1983); Roy and Mary Norton (former owners, 1983-1985); Morton Rutherford (former owner, 1985-1991); Alice Orme Smith (landscape architect, 1968); Sylvia Erskine (landscape architect, 1991-1992); Kenneth Twombly (horticulturist, 1993-1998); Paul Janisch (gardener, 1995-1999); and Russell Janisch (landscape gardener, 2000-present).