Ridgefield -- Ballard Park

In 1889, Lucius Horatio Biglow, a New York City music publisher, bought the property and expanded the colonial home with fine, landscaped grounds and fancy stone and iron walls. He called the place Graeloe. Biglow's daughter, Elizabeth Biglow Ballard donated the grounds to the town in 1964. Today, the park includes a playground, a bandstand, and the Ballard Greenhouse, used by the Ridgefield and Caudatowa Garden Clubs. According to a plaque in front of the structure, the gazebo was built in 1975 in memory of Ms. Ballard. The backland of the property has become Ballard Green, one of the town's housing for the elderly communities. Ballard Park consists of a series of small garden rooms in a large expanse of lawn, and is articulated by low growing shrubs and perennials and accented by mature shade trees. The garden is open to the public.

Person(s) associated with the garden and property include(s): the Ridgefield Garden Club; Lucius Horatio Biglow (former owner, 1889); Elizabeth Biglow Ballard (donor); and town of Ridgefield (owner).