Bok Tower and Gardens

On a recent trip this past summer to visit my daughter in Tampa, Florida, I had the opportunity to visit the “Bok Tower and Gardens”.   I had never heard of these gardens and what I found was a wonderful surprise!

Bok Tower and Gardens located in Lake Wales, Florida is about 60 miles east of Tampa. The gardens consist of 7.5 acres of meandering, contemplative and informal woodland settings offering a series of romantic recesses and tranquil resting spots, picturesque vistas and breathing taking views of the “Singing Tower”. The gardens are considered one of the greatest works of famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., son of the senior Olmstead who designed central park in New York City.

The gardens house two remarkable features: the “Singing Tower” and the “Pinewood Estate”. The idea for the Singing Tower and the gardens surrounding it was the vision of Edward William Bok (1863-1930). Mr. Bok, an American editor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, was born in Den Helder, Netherlands. He came to the United States at the age of six. He worked for several publishing companies, was editor of “The Brooklyn Magazine” from 1884 to 1887. In 1886, he founded “The Bok Syndicate Press”, which led to the editorship of “The Ladies Home Journal in 1889. Under his leadership the Journal became one of the most successful and influential publications in America and the first magazine in the world to have one million subscribers.

In 1921, Mr. Bok had an idea to preserve the hilltop outside of Lake Wales known as “Iron Mountain”, located at 298 feet above sea level. His idea was to preserve the hilltop and create a bird sanctuary; a place of beauty, serenity and peace. Mr. Olmstead directed the installation of the gardens with the first year devoted to the digging of many trenches and the installation of irrigation piping. Next the installation of many thousands of loads of rich black soil and lastly the plants. Today the gardens boost a fantastic display of ferns, palms, oaks, pines, azaleas, camellias, magnolias, and a large array of flowering plants. The gardens also play host to 126 different species of birds, as well as the threatened gopher tortoise and endangered eastern indigo snake. The gardens took 5 years to complete.

Located within the garden is “Singing Tower”, a 60 bell carillon. The sixty bells range in size from 16 pounds to nearly 12 tons. The bells do not move, instead, the clappers inside strike the bells to produce a considerable range of sounds up to five or six octaves. Bok's carillon was designed and built in 1928. The bells are housed in a 205 foot tall neo-Gothic and art deco tower designed by famed architect Milton B Medary and ornately crafted by noted stone sculptor Lew Lawrie.

The other hidden gem with the gardens is “Pinewood Estate”, a beautiful 20 room Mediterranean style mansion. The mansion was built within the 7.5 acre garden in early 1930 for Charles Austin Buck, a Bethlehem steel vice president. In 1970, the daughter-in-law of Edward William Bok acquired the mansion that is now part of the Bok Tower Gardens.

On February 1, 1929, President Calvin Coolidge dedicated the gardens in Lake Wales, Florida, which Mr. Bok had made as a gift for visitation by the American people in gratitude for the opportunity they had given him. Edward William Bok died at Lake Wales within sight of his beloved “Singing Tower” on January 9, 1930, and is buried at the base of the tower.

 

The beautiful scenery at Bok Tower Garden. (photos by Ken Williams)

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Singing Tower

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