Gardens at College of the Atlantic

Discover

The gardens at College of the Atlantic offer a walk through different ideas about what a cultivated space can do. On the Bar Harbor campus, formal garden rooms, a seaside planting, a community growing space and student-led restorations share a working educational landscape. Begin with the current campus map and visitor guidance, then choose a route that respects classes, offices and private areas. The attraction is the contrast between gardens with distinct histories, brought together within one college setting rather than a collection of separate destinations.

The Beatrix Farrand Garden gives that contrast a strong historical starting point. Designed in 1928 behind what is now Kaelber Hall, it uses walls, stairs and hedges to define intimate outdoor rooms. Consider the effect of that enclosure: a path brings you toward an opening, a wall limits one view and a step changes your relationship with the next space. Plants contribute color and texture within an architectural framework. Look at the relationship between that framework and the living material, without expecting every historic plant or seasonal flower to appear on a particular day.

Turrets Seaside Garden changes the scale of attention. Tucked behind The Turrets, the sunken formal space relates planted beds to a broader view across Frenchman Bay. Its restoration became a senior project for Eamonn Hutton, a 2005 graduate, connecting a historic landscape with student design work. The college describes decisions shaped by deer resistance and maintenance, reminding a visitor that a garden's appearance depends on continuing practical choices. Compare its openness toward the water with the more enclosed experience of Farrand's rooms, and notice how a view beyond the bed becomes part of the composition.

The separately named Sunken Garden adds another form of reuse. It occupies the footprint of a former summer house, so its retained structure belongs to a building history as well as a planting history. Student restoration began with Claire Verdier's senior project in 1980, while later work developed an edible garden supporting people and wildlife. Paths and built edges persisted as planting priorities changed. This makes a useful example of adaptation: caring for a historic space can involve a new educational purpose rather than repeating a former flower display exactly.

The Community Garden and Newlin Gardens broaden that relationship between cultivation and learning. The community plots bring students, staff and island residents into the practical work of growing, while Newlin's plant-focused setting connects landscape, memory and study. Treat working plots as someone else's carefully tended space; view them from permitted paths and follow current instructions about any harvest. The presence of food plants does not remove the need for consideration. A campus garden can be both a public experience and part of somebody's daily work, and a successful visit respects both uses.

Allow a modest route to be enough. Compare a room-like enclosure, a sea-facing planting and a reused building footprint, then consider how the college's educational life continues to shape them. Check current access and parking before arriving, stay on designated routes and keep photographs from interrupting the campus. The reward is a garden visit with several kinds of continuity: an established designer's framework, students' restoration projects and the repeated work of growing plants. Together they make this Bar Harbor landscape more interesting than a simple stop for flowers.

Fun facts

1. Beatrix Farrand designed the campus garden behind Kaelber Hall in 1928.
2. Turrets Seaside Garden was restored through Eamonn Hutton’s senior project.
3. The Sunken Garden occupies the footprint of a former summer house.

Read the official sources →

Visitor perspectives

1. A June 2019 visitor enjoyed comparing Turrets, Farrand and the other campus gardens, especially their different styles and the view toward Frenchman Bay. This historical visit does not establish today’s campus access arrangements.

Capture

1. From a designated garden path, use a wall or opening to frame the sequence of outdoor rooms without blocking circulation.
2. Photograph the permitted relationship between Turrets planting and the bay; avoid private rooms, identifiable students and restricted campus areas.

Social

College of the Atlantic’s gardens bring several ideas about cultivation into one Bar Harbor campus landscape.

The 1928 Farrand Garden uses stone walls, stairs and hedges to define outdoor rooms.

Turrets Seaside Garden connects a formal planting with a broader view across Frenchman Bay.

Student restoration is part of the garden story, including Eamonn Hutton’s work at Turrets.

The Sunken Garden reuses a former house footprint for a changing educational landscape.

Community plots connect growing with students, staff and island residents.

Compare enclosure, coastal outlook and adaptive reuse during one manageable garden walk.

Check campus access and parking guidance, then respect the college’s continuing daily life.

Hashtags

1. #Cre8Travel
2. #Maine
3. #BarHarbor
4. #CollegeOfTheAtlantic
5. #CampusGardens

Sources & visitor information

• www.coa.edu
• www.coa.edu
• www.coa.edu
• www.beatrixfarrandsociety.org