The COVID-19 pandemic brought a literal bright spot to the center of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in summer 2020.

For more than a century, the garden planted by poet Celia Thaxter on Appledore Island — recreated in recent decades by volunteers — has inspired and delighted visitors who make the 8-mile boat trip to the Isles of Shoals each summer. This year, however, Shoals Marine Laboratory, a marine science field station on Appledore jointly operated by UNH and Cornell University, had to cancel the garden tours. Thanks to a donation from a local resident, Thaxter’s famous garden found fertile soil in Portsmouth’s Prescott Park, where volunteers planted the heirloom hollyhock, dahlia, poppies, mignonette and more.

“Celia Thaxter and her garden are so beloved and visitors from all over the world are passionate about seeing it each summer so we knew we had to find the right spot on the mainland to replant this special garden for the summer,” says Shoals Marine Laboratory executive director Jennifer Seavey.

Kristin Duisberg

Photo by Corin Hallowell/City of Portsmouth