Early Spring Flowers at Shaw's Garden

FOLLOWING ARE PHOTOS taken today at the Missouri Botanical Garden, in Saint Louis, Missouri, otherwise known as Shaw's Garden, after its founder, Henry Shaw.

A little more than a month ago, the garden outside of the greenhouses was barren, but now the early spring flowers, mainly bulbs, are beginning to bloom. Click on any photo for a larger version.



















This garden was Shaw's country estate, and a number of his original buildings still survive. The following three structures at Shaw's Garden were all designed by the architect George I. Barnett.



Tower Grove House (1849), Shaw's country home, in the "Lake Como" Italianate style.



Museum building (1859), now closed and awaiting restoration.



Mausoleum (1886) containing tomb of Henry Shaw (1800-1889), R.I.P.



The Piper Observatory is a replica of the tower which gave the adjoining Tower Grove Park its name. Shaw donated the park to the city in 1868, and it remains a Victorian gem. Behind the tower is Shaw's townhouse (1851), removed from downtown Saint Louis and reconstructed here in 1891.



The tower overlooks a hedge maze.