“One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.”
William Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida
The Shakespeare Garden at Ellis Park
The garden is maintained by The Friends of Shakespeare Garden (FOSG) which formed in 2019 as a grassroots effort and collaboration between the Northwest Neighbors Neighborhood Association, Wednesday Shakespeare Club, the City of Cedar Rapids Parks and Recreation Department, the Linn County Master Gardeners, the Cedar Rapids Garden Club, and many community members and volunteers. Together, we work to maintain and enhance opportunities and events offered in the century old Ellis Park.
What is a Shakespeare Garden?
A Shakespeare Garden is a collection of some or all of the 175 plants mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare. It is a themed garden of these plants and Elizabethan architecture. Shakespeare Gardens in the United States were formed to show solidarity with our British allies during WWI. Shakespeare Gardens, although rare, can be found across the United States and across the world!
“The Shakespeare garden has contributed to the overall beauty of Cedar Rapids for nearly 100 years. In 1926 the women of the Wednesday Shakespeare Club recognized the need for and wished to provide a place that could be shared by all, and one cannot help but be amazed by their dedication to this community”.
Sylvia Popelka
Time Check resident, FOSG board member & historian,
Wednesday Shakespeare Club