There's a window in my garden
Looking out across the sea ~

An hour it takes
If you would view,
This garden of bloom
Both old and new

If you haven't the time
Don't bother to go,
It's a mile to walk
And it will tire you so.

But if you're a lover
Of birds and flowers
Follow the arrows
To beautiful bowers.

Such is the introduction to Kraftwood Gardens, nestled alongside the shores of Enterprise Lake in Langlade County.

The gardens were the passion of Pauline Kraft, wife of J.L. Kraft, one of the brothers who started Kraft Foods in Chicago.

Kraftwood Gardens were open to the public from July 4 to Labor Day each year from the 1920s to the 1950s.

According to a pamphlet at the site, "family and friends would spend a week or more in one of the cottages; thousands more came to see the gardens or worship and sing in the Community House on summer Sundays."

Pauline's legacy lives on today at Kraftwood Gardens through the labors of her grandson, James Kraft Hardy. Hardy, who is now a resident of Rhinelander, has spent the last 10 years uncovering the bones of his grandmother's garden.

Although Pauline's flowers have long been supplanted by native flora, the garden has evolved, through James' efforts, to reflect modern realities (where a full staff of gardeners is a rarity) while still alluding to the past.

James has removed 50 years of growth from the stone paths which made up the structure of her garden. He is assisted by his wife, Diane Dei Rossi, who is a master gardener.

In addition, James has revived his grandmother's tradition of opening the grounds at Kraftwood to visitors. For two weekends each year, he leads groups of people through the areas he has cleared, telling family anecdotes and stories about his own trials and tribulations while working to open the gardens again.

Sometimes, visitors share their own memories of visiting Kraftwood long ago and he adds those to his own repertoire.

One person on the tour held in June suggested that Hardy and Dei Rossi begin to collect visitors' stories in a kind of archive for future generations. "You know, we really should make this a participatory oral history project," Hardy responded, adding that the only impediment is the technical aspect of putting it together.