Nanaimo Historical Society public presentation

add to outlook add to google calendar remind me

Thursday, April 12th, 2018
7:30 PM to 9:00 PM

In Veronica's Garden: The Social History of Milner Gardens and Woodland

For the better part of the 20th century curious travellers along the stretch of Island Highway 19(A), between Qualicum College and Eaglecrest Golf Club may have wondered about what be within the predominantly Douglas Fir forest that spans the distance between the two landmark properties.

As seen from the length of highway it parallels this expansive grove was interrupted by a single gravel lane that winds into and soon disappears inside the 70 acre (28ha) plot of old growth coastal timber.

Eventually this road leads down to a bluff on the edge of Georgia Strait where, in 1931, a seven bedroom home with servants' quarters and designed with the architectural features of a Ceylonese tea plantation manor was built for the sister and mother of Qualicum Beach luminary, General Noel Money.

By 1937, Edmonton-based lawyer and businessman Ray Milner purchased the estate as a getaway recreational property. After Milner's first wife died in 1952 he married Veronica -- the creative force that transformed the estate into what it is today.

Veronica Milner was a British aristocrat and a descendent of the First Duke of Marlborough, and so also related to Winston Churchill and Diana, Princess of Wales. House guests she entertained at Milner Estate included Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana, as well as Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip.

Twice widowed after Ray died in 1975, Veronica stayed cloistered to the estate and attended to by servants and gardeners -- often stretched to cling to a lifestyle of extravagant expectations to which she had grown accustomed. She died at home in 1998, her ashes spread both in Milner Gardens and her ancestral home in Ireland.

About our speaker:

Margaret Cadwaladr, biographer and author of, In Veronica's Garden, maintained weekly visitations and interviews with Veronica during the last years of her life. Cadwaladr's research also extended to Ireland to visit Glin, the castle where Veronica had lived during her first marriage to Desmond Fitzgerald, Knight of Glin. There she met Veronica's late son Desmond, Knight of Glin, whose insight and assistance with source materials added greatly to the project.

Margaret's talk coincides with the publication of a new, expanded edition of the book tracing the transformation of the garden from a private estate to a public garden.

https://www.facebook.com/NanaimoHistory/

###

The Nanaimo Historical Society is a non-profit organization. Founded in 1953, the Society's mission is to preserve, promote, and celebrate the history of Nanaimo and central Vancouver Island.

Annual membership is $10 for a student, $24 for an individual, $30 for a family, and $34 for an organization.