Some passersby might suspect that the West Garden has always been in place. With its beautifully planted gardens, herringbone brick pathway and granite fountain, the West Garden at the Dr. Daniel Fisher House is a botanical jewel in the heart of Edgartown Village. Day after day, a parade of visitors meander up the brick path, toss a coin into the fountain, and sometimes take a quiet moment to sit and reflect in the historic Peabody Gazebo. We have seen children cart wheeling on the green grass and tourists photographing the lush flower gardens. Not long ago, the West Lawn was undeveloped and nondescript. With a generous gift from a patron of the Martha's Vineyard Preservation Trust and the expertise of local contractors, the West Garden has succeeded in its mission to blend into the landscape of Main Street in Edgartown. Over the course of a year, an electrical box was relocated, the lawn graded, sod laid, Peabody Gazebo placed on a new foundation, flowers and trees planted, bricks weaved into a pathway, granite basin installed and water pumped through the fountain. The West Garden's focal point is the onion-domed Peabody Gazebo, a graceful structure whose Vineyard heritage is that the heirs of the Peabodys have lived at Seven Gates for a long time, and this was theirs. Now, the West Garden is the picture of Edgartown elegance...as if it has always been in place.
