The Gazebo at sunset

One of the most photogenic places on the Abbey grounds is the Gazebo, located in close proximity to the Manor House, the center of the original Amos Smith property of 1864 and site of the first monastic enclosure. Together with the equally photogenic Boathouse, the Gazebo completes the set designed by Richard Upjohn, noted British-American architect of the nineteenth century. For our readers familiar with Portsmouth, this article may be little more than a brief gesture of appreciation for this beloved and signature feature of the place. For those less familiar, may the article serve as an introduction to some of the beauty with which God has graced our monastic habitat. Its original moniker, “The Lookout”, reminds us of all that it looks out over – a sweeping panoramic vision of Narragansett Bay, west to Prudence Island, southward to the Newport Bridge and north to Bristol and even to Providence.

The Gazebo has been a fixture for those residing here for well over a century and a half, gathering in beauty the view of the bay into our residential space. Through those years, the structure has required renovations and replacements, and does not entirely resemble its original iteration. Similarly, the gardens surrounding it have grown and shrunk, been imagined and reimagined. Dom Damian Kearney in this respect had a double connection to the Gazebo, as historian of the monastic property and its structures, and as dedicated to the work of gardening all over the grounds. In 2008, he was deeply involved in a renewed effort to renovate the surrounding gardens. The project was supported by the McShane family in memory of Gordon McShane, with Brian McShane ’71 offering remarks at a dedication ceremony for the garden. This event also provided occasion for an article on the history of the Gazebo reprinted below, which Dom Damian provided for the Summer Bulletin of the School.

Dom Damian Kearney, O.S.B.

An early “photo op”: the first students of the Priory School gather in front of the Gazebo for a School portrait. Br. Joseph Byron included this image in a recent slide presentation to the School of some of the history of the grounds
When Amos Smith engaged Richard Upjohn to build a summer villa in Portsmouth in 1864, he asked him to design several other buildings as well. In addition to the Manor House, which was first used as the monastery and then for almost fifty years as the administrative center of the school, two of the original structures still survive. Smith chose Upjohn, not simply because he was the leading architect of his day and who was to become the first president of the American Architectural Association, but because he had already designed houses on Hope Street in Providence for his brother, Governor of Rhode Island, and for himself. The two outbuildings, which are still in use, are the neo-Gothic Boathouse, now used as a marine biology laboratory, and the Gazebo, known in the nineteenth century as "a look out". The first mention of the gazebo is in a letter dated June 2,1864, from Upjohn to Smith in which he wrote: “I herewith send you the plans of the Gateway, - Boat House, Bathing House and Look Out which I hope will be satisfactory to you - if not will endeavor to make it so.”This summer house, designed by Upjohn, was an octagonal structure constructed of wood with a variegated tile roof, topped by a simple quill weathervane. The eight-sided shape providentially foreshadowed the octagonal design which Pietro Belluschi chose for the abbey church, built just one hundred years later, providing in this way an architectural link between the lower and upper sections of the campus. In the nineteenth century the gazebo had no garden around it, standing in a large empty field and overlooking the bay, the panoramic view unimpeded by the pine plantation and other trees that eventually concealed the water and Prudence island in the distance. In the late 1940s, under the supervision of Dom Hilary Martin, the building was enhanced with a stone floor constructed by the junior monks with a rose/bulb garden planted on the east side in several beds defined by yew trees terminating the paths. This was donated by the parent of an alumnus, Mrs. Ethel Crimmins. Shortly afterward, the roof, which had been damaged by hurricanes, had its original tiles replaced from those that remained on the Boathouse, which had likewise suffered from severe storms. For many years the garden was tended by Dom Philip and later by Dom Damian. Gradually, the gazebo almost vanished from sight in the summer months, surrounded as it was by dogwood trees and tall bushes, the garden evolving from a formal rose garden with symmetrical borders and paths to one that was varied, unplanned and decidedly informal.
Landscape plan for renovated garden (2007)
Over the past 20 years blight and systematic deforestation has restored the prospect of the Narragansett Bay, while the elimination of the old garden around the gazebo has served to highlight the simple beauty of this structure, an example of the Victorian style at its best. During the summer there is always a breeze from the bay, making it an ideal escape from the sultry humid heat of July and August, and affording, in a comfortable setting, a perfect view of the water dotted with boats of every description as they race up and down the bay during the weekends or sail at their own leisurely pace from May until October.
The Gazebo in winterIn the autumn of 2007 a suggestion was made that the area around the gazebo be restored to the formal state it possessed in the 1950s and that a new garden should be designed to be given by a family, closely associated with Portsmouth, in memory of their father for whom this was a favorite spot when he was in the school. Thereupon, Lucinda Brockway, a professional garden designer, who has overseen a number of projects at the school and the Carnegie Abbey Club, was asked to create a plan which would recapture the past, take advantage of the unique beauty of the setting, and highlight the building itself. To achieve this certain features would be added such as bluestone paths, stone slabs to replace wooden steps, the reduction of the area of the garden to make its scale more compatible with the building and the complete removal of the old garden. The planting is intended to incorporate the whole year, so that each season has its appropriate growth. Underground irrigation facilitates watering, and lighting has been installed to illuminate the building and some of the surrounding foliage. Teak furniture for the interior and Adirondack chairs placed on the lawn on the west side have been provided to take advantage of the spectacular view of the bay. A new quill weathervane, similar to the original one destroyed in the 1954 hurricane, now surmounts the roof.
The summer Car ShowAn inscription carved on the front pavement alludes to the parent being remembered: “To whom much has been entrusted, from him much will be required Luke 12: 28.” This verse is especially appropriate since in his Rule, Saint Benedict quotes it in the admonitions given to the Abbot in his chapter, "What Manner of Man the Abbot Should Be." The project was completed in time for graduation this year and a dedication ceremony took place in July for the family who made the restoration possible. The Daponte Landscape Company under the supervision of Mr. Seraphin Daponte of Bristol worked closely with Ms. Brockway in the successful restoration of the garden and the enhancement of the Gazebo. This firm with Ms. Brockway has also been instrumental in helping beautify other sections of the school grounds, especially in the garden in front of the church and in the landscaping of St. Brigid's House.

Upjohn’s Lookout, summer sunset