Set along the banks of the Delaware, Trenton’s Island neighborhood is a mix of natural beauty, vintage architecture and historic charm. The annual Garden Tour is an opportunity for visitors to see some of the city’s best kept secrets during one of its loveliest seasons. With a mix of landscaping, hardscaping and personal style, the neighborhood’s gardens are in full swing come mid-June, with annuals, perennials, bushes and trees in various stages of bloom. Some offer showy displays of flowers in sunny curbside plots, while others provide shady retreats in hidden back yards.
Visitors will be provided with information about the neighborhood itself, which was once only accessible by foot bridges over the canal, hence its name. In the 1950’s, the canal was replaced by Rt. 29, but the physical geography and natural boundaries continue to reinforce its draw as a destination and urban oasis.
Visitors will also have the opportunity to explore the adjacent Stacy Park, which begins at the neighborhood’s southern end, where the tour ends. The park’s log basin, a popular fishing spot, speaks to Trenton’s regional and commercial history as a place where timber from upstream would be sent down the river during the Spring melt and corralled in the pond before being sent to the mills.
At the far end of the park, John Roebling’s suspension-style prototype of the Brooklyn Bridge (the “shaky” bridge) crosses a small inlet before giving way to the Water Works
building.
The self-guided tour begins at 308 Colombia Ave., Trenton. Ample street parking is Available for Free. Sponsored by the Island Civic Association. $10 at the Door, no advance purchase. Organizers say proceeds will benefit Community Beautification projects.
