A circus train chugs through a rustic village in the backyard garden of Hill and Betty Harryman, June 1999.

Taylorville Garden Walk

When the newly formed Taylorville Tourism Council sought ideas for a fund-raiser so it could afford to promote the city, a garden walk was proposed. The idea had much to offer. It would provide a summer attraction to balance winter's Christmas home tour events. Further, a garden walk was a novelty so it wouldn't conflict with long-established summer and fall festivals. Best of all, the city of 11,000 was graced with many gardens -- flower, vegetable, herb, wild flowers -- that people had cultivated for many years. Located 30 miles from the state capital of Springfield, Taylorville first hosted a pilgrimage of nearly 1,000 visitors to 11 gardens on a sunny day in June 1996. On Saturday, June 17, 2000, the event will feature a first -- a 640-acre soybean and corn farm operated by the fourth generation of the pioneering Breckenridge family -- along with woodland, wildflower, all-season, 19th-century, water and other gardens. Taylorville has positioned itself as a "gateway to gardens," and the Garden Walk promises to continue to blossom in the years to come.

Originally submitted by: John Shimkus, Representative (20th District).

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