Winter Celebration: “A Garden Inferior to Few…” The Williamsburg Garden of John Custis IV
February 1, 2026 @ 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
John Custis IV is one of Williamsburg, Virginia’s more colorful historic residents. In addition to being an influential member of the political elite, a wealthy plantation owner, and eventually the first father-in-law of Martha Washington, Custis was the creator of one of the most renowned colonial gardens of the early 18th century. Custis’ indulgence in ornamental garden design resulted in the creation of a pleasure garden said to rival that of the Royal Governor. Known as Custis Square, the four-acre garden was said to contain gravel paths, topiary, hundreds of native and imported plant varieties, and even statues. Friendships with gardening luminaries such as John Bartram and Peter Collinson opened up Custis to a global palette of plants and the correspondence between these “brothers of the spade” has revealed much about the plants within the garden. However, the actual appearance and layout has remained a mystery… until now. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has just concluded a five-year archaeological excavation to uncover this important lost landscape.
We will explore the evidence gathered through excavation and specialized environmental analysis to discover the design for the garden, revealing a truly baroque layout. From the locations of individual fruit trees to the evidence for large-scale earthmoving to create vistas, the results of this research have provided details recorded nowhere else. Developed at a time of transformation in European garden fashions, studying Custis’ garden provides an opportunity to better understand how elite Americans translated new landscape conventions into a different cultural and environmental setting. The result is a sophisticated garden that is globally influenced but American in execution.
Event schedule:
3:00 pm – Lecture
4:00 pm – Reception with hors d’oeuvres and cash bar
After the lecture, mix and mingle with the speaker during the reception.
For an easy dinner, make a reservation at the Broad Table Tavern. Members of the Scott Associates receive a 15% discount at the Broad Table Tavern (discount not valid on alcoholic beverages).
Program Details
- Advance registration is required.
- Limited to 150 people.
- Email us if you have accessibility needs for this program.
- For more information, review our program and event policies or call the Scott office at 610-328-8025.
About the Presenter
Jack Gary is the associate vice president for historic resources for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. He leads a team of archaeologists, curators, architects, and scholars to reveal the hidden stories of Williamsburg’s past. He is currently directing the archaeological research for the restoration of the garden of John Custis IV as well as the research into Williamsburg’s First Baptist Church, the oldest Black Church in the United States. Jack oversees a collection of over 60 million artifacts and the development and construction of the new Campbell Archaeology Center, which will open in 2026 as the country’s premier archaeology museum. He is the former director of archaeology and landscapes for Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest, where he directed the archaeological research that led to the Garden Club of Virginia’s restoration of the ornamental landscape surrounding Jefferson’s villa retreat.
About ACCESS
Scott Arboretum & Gardens proudly participates in the Art-Reach ACCESS program. Pennsylvania ACCESS/EBT cardholders, and Art-Reach ACCESS cardholders may receive $2 tickets for the cardholder and up to 3 guests. This discount may not be valid for special events or sold out events, or combined with other discount offers. Visitors must show their ACCESS card and valid photo ID on the day of the program. For more information about the ACCESS program, please visit art-reach.org/access.
