French Colonial Missouri History.

bolduc house museum

Photographs by Bruce Pendleton  © 2009 by the Bolduc House Museum. Left– a view of the herb cottage in the Bolduc Garden; Center– late autumn in the vegetable garden behind the Bolduc House; Right– Sainte Genevieve boxwoods form an allée from the garden to the Bolduc House.
Text Box: Eighteenth century French Colonial American homes were surrounded by a wooden palisade fence to keep the roaming animals out. The fence enclosed the gardens as well. Usually these gardens were filled with the vegetables, kitchen and medicinal herbs, as well as the plants that were needed for other housekeeping tasks. A small orchard and vineyard could also be found within the stockade. The French cooperated in farming a much larger community field where they grew grain. Each land-owner was assigned their own narrow strips, called arpents, in the Grand Champ. The Grand Champ is just east of St. Mary’s Road. Text Box: Bolduc Gardens Text Box: Enjoy the colorful blooming beds in the Bolduc-LeMeilleur yard just inside the gate. The first three garden beds are dedicated in loving memory to Vergie Stange and in honor of her daughter, Lorraine Stange, who succeeded her mother as director of the Museum until she retired in 2009. All of the plants in these beds are the favorites of Vergie and Lorraine Stange. Notice the blue, yellow, and white flowers in the fourth triangular garden bed. These are the colors in the flag of The National Society of the Colonial Dames in America. The small orchard contains several apple trees and a chestnut tree as well as a small grape arbor within the Bolduc stockade. Sainte Genevieve boxwood forms allée from the back porch of the Bolduc-LeMeilleur House. More native boxwood grows in the Bolduc garden as well as in a grove behind the Linden House Look for signs announcing the next scheduled garden tour when you come. Then enjoy the smell, taste, and feel of our herbs, flowers, and vegetables. Ask for a list of the American plants that were unknown in Europe and Colonial America before the Lewis & Clark Expedition. Then try to find each one in our Linden Yard Text Box: Our annual herb sale will be held on May 15-16, 2010 during the Sainte Genevieve Garden Walk. Beginning on Earth Day, you will be able to purchase seeds from plants and herbs like lavender and flax that have been grown right here in the Bolduc Gardens. At Christmas time, come again to buy ornaments made from the flowers we grew during the year.