Tyler Rose Garden

There isn’t much free in the world today, but there is still a chance to stop and smell the roses, at least there is in Tyler, Texas. At the Tyler Rose Garden and Rose Garden Center, the people of this town are able to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life and see what nature can really do in this incredible garden with a rich history.

The Tour Basics

1. Featuring over 30,000 individual rose bushes and over 600 different varieties, the rose lover in your life is going to enjoy the sheer view from the first stop in the rose garden tour. Standing on the steps of the Rose Garden Center, one can see the garden in its entirety, a sight to behold for sure.
2. The second stop honors the first gardener employed in the Rose Garden. His name was Sid Maxfield and he is honored in his former place of employment with a beautiful array of miniature roses in a collective area that has since been named for him.
3. On the third stop, visitors will find an area dedicated to the cultivators of new species of roses. Through the All American Rose Selection’s rigorous standards, this section of the garden is used to house the roses that may be the next available for purchase by laymen. Each new type is kept on display for two years and then subsequently judged for final approval.
4. On the fourth and fifth stop, visitors will be treated to the tranquil sound of water flowing through two different fountains. The first fountain has been in Texas since 1912, where it used to sit in front of the County Court House. The second fountain is often used in modern photography as the Rose Garden and the Rose Garden Center are popular spots for weddings. This fountain used to be located in downtown Tyler at the Wagon Yard.
5. At the sixth and seventh stop, tour takers will see a beautiful old-fashioned sundial surrounded by the more modern shades of roses, including the ever-popular bridal pink variety. They will also get to check out the plaque dedicated to another of the key nurserymen in the Rose Garden, Henry Thompson, who lost his life in WWII. View all of these incredible sites and more on the Rose Garden Tour where admission is free and the smells are just a bonus.

The History

The land was first purchased by the city of Tyler in 1912 and was commissioned to be the site of a park and fairgrounds, but for years the land sat vacant. In 1938, the American Rose Society President urged for an application to go in to the Public Works Department to build a public garden space and an $181,000 grant was issued for its construction.

As an incredibly popular site for weddings and parties, the Rose Garden has returned the investment of its grant several times over and has provided delight to the people of Tyler for years to come.