April 19, 2010                                                              863-734-1210; cjacoby@boktower.org

What:              Free Admission & Special Events for Stranded Tourists
When:             April 20-27, 2010 (or until normal flight schedules resume)
Where:            Bok Tower Gardens

Stranded Tourists Offered Free Admission & Special After-hours Events

LAKE WALES – Bok Tower Gardens will offer free admission to tourists stranded in Florida due to the interruption in international air travel caused by Icelandic volcanic ash. Stranded tourists must present a valid return airline ticket from Wednesday, April 14 through Wednesday, April 21 or until normal flight schedules resume. One ticket will be offered for each return flight ticket presented. Children under age 5 are free.

Special after-hours events will be available for families to enjoy. This Saturday, April 24, the WEDU Star Gaze will offer the opportunity to view Saturn and other deep sky celestial wonders from 6 to 11 p.m. The Blue Palmetto Café will remain open until 7 p.m. when the admission gate will close. Telescopes will be provided by Webber International University and amateur astronomers of Lake Wales. Participants also are encouraged to bring their own telescopes. WEDU will preview the national public television documentary, “400 Years of the Telescope.” Admission is $5 per person (including members); children under 5 are free. Military free with identification. General public and member tickets may be purchased online at www.boktowergardens.org <http://www.boktowergardens.org>  or at the gate. Seating is limited and scholarship tickets are available.

On Tuesday, April 27, the 500th anniversary of the first carillon (Oudewaarde, Belgium, 1510) will be celebrated during the final Moonlight Carillon Concert of the season at 7:30 p.m. Visitors can experience the Gardens by the light of a full moon for half-price admission, have a light dinner at the Blue Palmetto Café and enjoy an hour-long concert by carillonneur William De Turk performing “Music of Carillon Countries.” General public admission is half-price and members are free.

On Saturday, May 1, the 20th annual Concert Under the Stars with the Imperial Symphony Orchestra will begin at 7:30 p.m. The pre-show features Mustang Sally and The Hamjos at 5:30 p.m. A favorite Central Florida outdoor gathering, the event draws thousands of visitors who enjoy a picnic and pops musical evening with family and friends as the sun sets over Iron Mountain. Tickets are $15 members or $20 general public; $25 day of the concert (members and general public). Children under 5 are admitted free. Group discounts are available. Visit www.boktowergardens.org to purchase tickets.

Information about upcoming Gardens’ events and activities is available with a free subscription to the “Friends of Bok Tower Gardens” eNewsletter. Visit www.boktowergardens.org to join or call 863-676-1408 for more information.

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About Bok Tower Gardens:
Bok Tower Gardens, a National Historic Landmark, voted Florida’s Best Garden, is located 55 miles southwest of Orlando and 60 miles east of Tampa near Lake Wales, Florida, and is open every day of the year from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., last admission at 5 p.m. The Visitor Center, Café and Gift Shop are open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $3 for ages 5-12. Members and children under 5 are admitted free. For more information contact Bok Tower Gardens, 1151 Tower Boulevard, Lake Wales FL 33853; 863-676-1408 or visit www.boktowergardens.org

LAKE WALES, Fla. – The beginnings of Bok Tower Gardens date back to 1863 and the birth of Edward William Bok in Den Helder, Netherlands. Bok came to the United States with his family at the age of six, not knowing the language, customs or culture. However, Bok’s outgoing personality and enterprising spirit helped him become a model for successful adaptation to a new country and modern times. He overcame numerous challenges to become an outspoken thought leader who helped shape the ideas, values and priorities of the emerging American middle class. In many ways, Bok acted as a mediator between the Victorian world and a modern society. His life story epitomizes the history of immigration, the influence of journalism on society, social and environmental advocacy, as well as the American Dream.

The epitome of an entrepreneur, the young Edward Bok attended Brooklyn Public Schools and discovered early on that he could earn money by identifying a need then fulfilling it with an earnest spirit and hard work. Bok created his first job opportunity by telling a baker, who was displaying freshly baked items in his storefront window, that his goods would look even more appetizing if the store’s windows were clean. The baker paid Bok fifty cents a week to clean the windows. Soon thereafter, Bok demonstrated his customer service skills and was hired to wait on customers inside.

Bok’s enterprising spirit eventually led to his spending days working as an office boy with the Western Union Telegraph Company and continuing his education at a night school. Simultaneously, he held several jobs to help support his family.

Although Bok had mastered a schoolboy’s English, he realized that seven years of public school education were hardly a basis on which to build the work of a lifetime. So, he became absorbed with a hunger for self-education. He wanted to know how these prominent men had become successful and what they had in common.

As an office boy at Western Union, Bok came into contact with some of the foremost men of the time, including William Vanderbilt and his associates as well as Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison. Bok went to the library and read about them. After a considerable amount of traveling back and forth to the library to read Appleton’s Encyclopædia biographies of famous men, Bok began to save his money by not eating lunch and by walking instead of riding to and from work, so that he could buy his own set. Bok was inspired to learn that many of these now-famous men not only had limited educational experiences similar to his own, but also very modest beginnings.

In 1882, Bok took a job with Henry Holt & Company publishers, and two years later became associated with Charles Scribners’ Sons Publishers, eventually becoming advertising manager. Bok’s outgoing nature coupled with his work in the publishing business allowed the young man access to many of the top thought leaders and writers of his time, including President Rutherford B. Hayes. Bok’s thirst for biographical knowledge and his wonderfully inquisitive nature sparked within him a desire to seek out famous people, talk with them to discover if what he had read was true and eventually to collect their autographs. His famous autograph collection is now in the Library of Congress.

When Bok was only 16 and had never been away from home, he decided that he wanted to meet some of the greatest writers of that time. So he saved his money and embarked on a pilgrimage to Boston to meet the men he so admired, including Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Phillips Brooks and Robert Louis Stevenson. Bok met these men along with several other famous people who all graciously took time to open their homes and meet with the young boy and to share their hearts and personal stories with him. This was the beginning of Bok’s lifelong quest of learning about people.

In 1884, Bok accepted the editorship of The Brooklyn Magazine (which later became Cosmopolitan). Then in 1886, he founded The Bok Syndicate Press, which in 1889 led to his becoming the editor of The Ladies’ Home Journal, the most prestigious women’s magazine of the day. As a young immigrant, Bok and his brother had given up their playtime to help their ailing mother with the cooking, cleaning and household chores that a crew of servants had taken care of in their homeland. Bok’s personal experience with “women’s work” gave him valuable insight that helped him create a monthly bible of cooking, gardening, home management and style. Under his leadership, the magazine became one of the most successful and influential publications in America and the first magazine in the world to have one million subscribers. He invented the modern advice column on love and marriage in the Journal. In addition, he elevated the publication from being simply light entertainment to being a forum for serious articles, issues and crusades. After a stellar 30-year career, Bok retired in 1919. A year later, he published The Americanization of Edward Bok, which won the Gold Medal of the Academy of Political and Social Science and the Joseph Pulitzer Prize for the best autobiography.

In addition to his professional accomplishments, Bok emerged as a champion of social causes, a pioneer in the fields of prenatal education, childcare and even public sex education. He was a well-respected environmental activist who was instrumental in helping to save Niagara Falls and raising its profile as a popular national landmark. In the 1920s, Bok also was interested in preserving Florida’s Tiger Creek, a pristine blackwater stream that runs through the state’s oldest and highest landmass-the Lake Wales Ridge. Some four decades later, Bok’s son, Cary, along with help from The Nature Conservancy and numerous other groups, raised the funds to purchase and preserve the 4,000+ acres of hardwood swamps, hammocks, oak scrub, pine flatwoods, longleaf pine and wiregrass habitat that is home to many rare animals and plants.

Edward Bok was a thoughtful man who believed in promoting world peace, nature preservation and culture. To that end, he founded numerous awards and civic enterprises such as:
The Philadelphia Award of $10,000 a year to the citizen of Philadelphia who performed an act or contributed a service that advanced the best interests of the local community.
The American Peace Award which offered $100,000 for the best practicable plan by which the United States might cooperate with other nations to achieve and preserve the peace of the world.

The Harvard Advertising Awards bestowed by the Harvard University School of Business Administration for raising the standard of advertisements in American and Canadian periodicals and for the intelligent conception and execution of plans for advertising.
The Woodrow Wilson Professorship of Literature at Princeton University.

Bok also anonymously donated significant sums of money to support cultural efforts. For instance, when the Philadelphia Orchestra was facing bankruptcy in the early 1900s, Bok donated $250,000 a year for five years to help the organization get back on its feet, earn community support and develop a viable business plan.

Edward Bok’s contributions have transcended his lifetime. His family members, including his wife Mary Louise Curtis Bok, have continued to contribute to America as philanthropists, educators and socially minded leaders that continue to better the world even today.
Edward Bok’s son, Curtis Bok, served as a judge on the Pennsylvania Supreme
Court.

Edward Bok’s son, Cary Bok, was one of the first board members of The Nature Conservancy.
Edward Bok’s grandson, Derek Bok, was a professor of law at Harvard from 1958 to 1968; served as the Dean of the Law School (1968-1971); and then was appointed President (1971-1991). He is attributed with saying: “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.”
Edward Bok’s great granddaughter (Derek Bok’s daughter), Victoria Bok, served as the director of Housing and Neighborhood Development for the city of New Haven, Connecticut and has been lauded for her groundbreaking efforts with urban revitalization in that region.

Among Edward Bok’s many outstanding contributions, some people, including his own son, believe that Bok Tower Gardens remains his greatest idea.

“..(it) is the greatest idea my father ever had, the most lasting and the most significant. All others that he had, but one (the Philadelphia Award), have ceased for one reason or another.

His Sanctuary, a pure gift to the American people without a hint that in visiting it they would in any way become a captive audience, is unique among his ideas. It was not built as a church, a theater, a school, a forum, or a platform. It was built … in dedication to the repose of the human spirit.”

Curtis Bok,
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Judge & son of Edward W. Bok
at Bok Tower Gardens’ 50th Anniversary

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About Bok Tower Gardens
Bok Tower Gardens, located approximately 55 miles southwest of Orlando and 60 miles east of Tampa, near Lake Wales, Florida, is open every day of the year from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., last admission at 5 p.m. The Visitor Center is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $3 for ages 5-12. Members and children under 5 are admitted free. For more information, call 863-676-1408 or visit www.boktowergardens.org.

LAKE WALES, Fla. – During the time that Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. was designing Florida’s first historical landscape garden, Edward W. Bok decided he wanted to add something to the site that would pay homage to his Dutch homeland. As a child in the Netherlands, Bok was charmed by the majesty and melodies of old world carillons. He decided that one of these “Singing Towers” would be the perfect addition to the Gardens. He envisioned a majestic Tower that would serve as the focal point of the Gardens and provide a permanent home for a world-class carillon. The carillon at Bok Tower Gardens was the first and today is one of only four in the state of Florida.

What is a carillon?
A carillon is a musical instrument consisting of at least 23 cast bronze bells that are precisely tuned and arranged in chromatic progression so that music in any key can be played. Unlike other types of bells, carillon bells are fixed in a frame-the bells do not move. Instead, the clappers inside strike the bells to produce a considerable range of sounds of nearly five octaves. Because of its weight and size, the carillon is one of the largest of all instruments. A carillon is played from a keyboard (sometimes called a pedalboard) on which the keys are depressed by the player’s closed hands
and feet. The keys are connected to the clappers by vertical and horizontal wires.

The Carillon at Bok Tower Gardens
The carillon at Bok Tower Gardens has 60 bells ranging in weight from 16 pounds to nearly 12 tons. The instrument was designed and built in 1928 by John Taylor Bellfoundry, Ltd. of Loughborough, England-the world’s largest bellfoundry which still makes bells today. There are four carillons in Florida, about 200 in North America and about 500 throughout the world.

How is carillon music written and played?
Although carillon music looks like piano music, the treble clef is usually played by the hands and the bass clef by the feet. The carillon’s action is mechanical, which allows the performer to control the dynamics (loud and soft) by the force of the strike. There is no mechanism to dampen the sound after a bell is struck. Because carillon bells are rich in overtones, the consonant and dissonant combinations are sometimes reversed in carillon music to account for the presence of a minor-third overtone in each bell.

How are the bells tuned?
Carillon bells are tuned just after they are cast and before they are installed. A bell is placed on a lathe and metal is carefully removed from the various heights of the inside wall of the bell. If tuned correctly, the bells never have to be re-tuned.

Who plays the carillon at Bok Tower Gardens?
There have been only four resident carillonneurs at Bok Tower Gardens. The first carillonneur was Anton Brees, who served as the only carillonneur from 1928 until 1967. Milford Myhre was the carillonneur from 1968 to June 2004. In 1991, Terry McKinney became the first assistant carillonneur, and then in 1993, William De Turk replaced him as the assistant carillonneur and librarian of the Anton Brees Carillon Library, one of the largest carillon libraries in the world. De Turk became the Gardens’ carillonneur July 1, 2004. In August 2005, Lee Cobb was appointed assistant carillonneur and librarian of the Anton Brees Carillon Library.

Performance Schedule
Recorded carillon selections are played at 9 a.m., 10 a.m. and every half-hour following. Live and recorded concerts are performed every day at 1 and 3 p.m.

The Singing Tower
(While safety regulations prohibit visitors from entering the Tower, many are curious about what it holds within.)
Bok Tower Gardens Singing Tower stands 205-feet tall and is surrounded by a 15-foot-wide moat. Its primary purpose is to serve as a visual centerpiece of the Gardens and provide a permanent home for the world-famous carillon. The Tower was designed by Milton Medary and includes an elegant and sophisticated mix of neo-Gothic and art deco features. It is crafted from coquina stone quarried in St. Augustine, Florida, as well as pink (Etowah) and gray (Creole) marble from Tate, Georgia. It is 51-feet square at the base and tapers to an octagonal shape at the 150-foot level as it reaches into the sky.

Lee Lawrie designed the sculptural elements of the Tower which portray a variety of Florida flora and fauna, as well as references to Aesop’s Fables.

At the ground level, on the south side is a vertical, pink marble sundial that features sculptor Lawrie’s interpretation of the 12 signs of the zodiac. It also includes a bronze snake gnomon, which casts a shadow on the dial face to indicate the sun time. Traditional figures representing the signs of the zodiac, one for each month, are carved in relief around the dial.

At 30 feet, the Tower is encircled with a band of carved marble that depicts a parade of native wildlife including herons, pelicans and fish, while scenes from Aesop’s fables feature a fox and a goose, as well as a hare and a tortoise.

At 130 feet, the windows have an intricately carved faience adorned with majestic herons and other birds, as well as sea creatures like jellyfish and seahorses.

At 150 feet, where the Tower changes from a square base into an octagon, there are four marble finials carved in the shape of patriotic eagles, who seem to be surveying the horizon beyond Iron Mountain. This level also features one of Florida’s most beautiful works of art: the eight grilles that encase the carillon. Covering the open 37-foot-tall windows in a Gothic lace pattern are spectacular, richly-colored green and blue tiles designed by J. H. Dulles Allen.

At the top of the Tower, positioned on the octagonal corners of the Tower’s parapet is a collection of 14-foot-high marble herons-there are four groupings, each with a single male heron proudly holding a fish in his beak, perched beside a hen and her nestlings.

The Entranceway and Interior (Due to safety regulations, the interior of the Tower is not open to the public.)
The single entrance to the Tower features a large, imposing teakwood door overlaid with brass that was created by master metalworker Samuel Yellin. The door is covered with 32 hand-crafted brass panels that depict the story of the six days of creation. Behind the door is the first floor Founder’s Room, which was reserved for use by the Bok family. It also holds the original Otis electric elevator, which is still operational. In addition, the various levels of the Tower house the following elements:

Level Two Future site of library annex/archives room
Level Three Mechanical equipment
Level Four Curators’ workshop
Level Five Anton Brees Carillon Library
Level Six Carillonneur’s studio
Level Seven Carillon

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About Bok Tower Gardens
Bok Tower Gardens, located approximately 55 miles southwest of Orlando and 60 miles east of Tampa, near Lake Wales, Florida, is open every day of the year from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., last admission at 5 p.m. The Visitor Center is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $3 for ages 5-12. Members and children under 5 are admitted free. For more information, call 863-676-1408 or visit www.boktowergardens.org.

Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. had designed Edward Bok’s Gardens and several private gardens inside Mountain Lake Estates, a neighboring private community. Buck engaged Olmsted’s firm to design the landscape of his winter estate. In 1929, landscape architect William Lyman Phillips of the Olmsted Brothers firm began to design the gardens and the placement of the house. In 1930, architect Charles Wait was hired to design the house that was to become one of the finest examples of Mediterranean-style architecture in the state of Florida. The estate was the result of the collaborative inspiration of Buck, Wait and Phillips.

Because Buck was a lover of nature and an amateur horticulturist, the gardens were designed first and the house was positioned later to provide a natural flow from garden to house. The estate’s external landscape and ornamental touches were designed by Phillips, who later designed the world-famous Fairchild Tropical Garden in Coral Gables (Miami). Phillips had spent time in the Canal Zone where he developed a keen appreciation for tropical landscapes.

Phillips’ contributions to the estate include several wonderful elements: a formal Mediterranean-style garden with a Spanish frog fountain that leads guests into an enchanting stone grotto at the front of the house, an Oriental moon gate fountain off the dining room porch and an English-style country garden with a rolling lawn and a pond that reflects the afternoon sunsets.

Buck was a great admirer of the Latin lifestyle and architecture, and he wanted “El Retiro” to be reminiscent of it. Wait designed the 12,900-square foot Mediterranean-style home with many characteristics of an antique villa-a barrel-tile roof, thick walls, substantial carved doors and woodwork and intricately detailed wrought iron.

Wait also included a series of three large porches to provide Buck and his guests with uninterrupted views of the sweeping vistas and a wonderful view of the Tower. The team worked to situate the entire house so that fantastic views from the house were framed by the surrounding tall pine and live oak trees.

In an effort led by Nellie Lee Holt Bok, daughter-in-law of Gardens’ founder Edward W. Bok, Pinewood Estate was acquired in 1970 and “El Retiro” was renamed “Pinewood Estate.” Famed restoration landscape architect, Rudy Favretti, was engaged along with a corps of volunteers to restore the manor to its original glory so it could be enjoyed by visitors.

Self-guided walking tours of Pinewood are offered daily. The tour price is $6 for adults and $3 for children ages 5-12 and is in addition to the regular admission to the Gardens. Children under age 5 are admitted free. The house closes for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Christmas at Pinewood decorating and dismantling.

Christmas at Pinewood
Christmas at Pinewood begins the day after Thanksgiving and lasts for five weeks. Each year, Central Florida interior designers and a team of 200 volunteer Angels transform the 20-room Mediterranean-style mansion into a holiday showcase. The designers create an ambiance similar to how the original owners may have decorated for the holidays and features a new theme each year. From traditional to whimsical, visitors experience sensory delights throughout the mansion.

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About Bok Tower Gardens:
Bok Tower Gardens, a National Historic Landmark, is located 55 miles southwest of Orlando and 60 miles east of Tampa near Lake Wales, Florida, and is open every day of the year from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., last admission at 5 p.m. The Visitor Center, Café and Gift Shop are open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $3 for ages 5-12. Members and children under five are admitted free. For more information contact Bok Tower Gardens, 1151 Tower Boulevard, Lake Wales FL 33853; 863-676-1408 or visit www.boktowergardens.org.

Edward W. Bok, his cadre of master artisans and hundreds of laborers worked for more than seven years to design and create a living legacy for all time. For nearly 80 years, the Gardens has served as a source of personal, spiritual and cultural enrichment for more than 23 million visitors.

Bok commissioned the following eminent artisans to help him create the masterpiece now known as Bok Tower Gardens:

Boston Landscape Architect – Frederick Law Olmsted Jr.
Philadelphia Architect – Milton B. Medary
New York City Sculptor – Lee Lawrie
Philadelphia Metalworker – Samuel Yellin
Philadelphia Tileworks – J. H. Dulles Allen
English Bell Makers – John Taylor Bellfounders

Landscape Architect Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (1870-1959)
Pivotal to Bok’s plan to create the Gardens was the participation of Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., the most distinguished landscape architect of the generation. As bearer of the most renowned name in landscape architecture, Olmsted was chosen for positions of prominence from the very start of his career. He was the son of Frederick Law Olmsted, the father of landscape architecture and designer of New York City’s Central Park. After graduating from Harvard, Olmsted Jr. worked with his father on the Biltmore Estate and eventually landscaped many of Washington, D.C.’s most prominent landmarks, including the White House, Jefferson Memorial, Washington National Cathedral and the National Zoo. Later in his career, he wrote the key language of the federal legislation that established the National Park Service and served as the agency’s first director.

In 1923, Olmsted Jr. embarked on his mission to transform Bok Tower Gardens from a sand hill into one of the nation’s most beautiful garden sanctuaries. For the next five years, Olmsted Jr. and his team diligently planted a mix of native and exotic plants that would thrive in the humid climate and lend a tropical feel to the native oak hammock. Olmsted’s skillful use of ferns, palms, oaks, pines and other foliage creates a rich backdrop of green textures that frame the seasonal bursts of colorful blooms of camellias, azaleas, gardenias, magnolias and other perennials that came in later years to create an ever-changing work of art.

From a practical perspective, Olmsted also carefully selected plants that would provide a hearty supply of food and shelter for migrating birds and other wildlife in the Gardens.

The pathways leading up to the Singing Tower wind through the Olmsted historic landscape gardens. When visitors reach the top, a majestic view of the entire Tower is revealed in the Reflection Pool, showcasing one of Florida’s most photographed sites.

Edward Bok recruited famous artisans Milton B. Medary and Lee Lawrie to design a masterpiece that embodied the Gardens’ spirit of perfect unity, communicated through profound symbolism and represented in the unique Florida flavor. For example, the sculptures of the Tower convey a decidedly spiritual and nature theme through the use of majestic eagles and herons, as opposed to the gargoyles of traditional Gothic design.

Architect Milton B. Medary (1874-1929)
Bok commissioned fellow Philadelphian and architect Milton B. Medary to design and build the carillon Tower. A partner in the firm Zanzinger, Borie & Medary and president of the American Institute of Architects, Medary designed the Washington Memorial Chapel at Valley Forge and the Justice Department building in Washington, D.C. The Lake Wales project was an opportunity for Medary to adapt traditional Gothic design and incorporate the unique elements that represented Florida’s nature. His solution was an art deco and neo-Gothic tower built with a steel frame structure encased in beautiful coquina stone from St. Augustine, Florida, and pink and gray marble from Tate, Georgia. The Tower features sculpted finials, balconies, an arched entranceway and elaborately carved screens, friezes, tiles, metal work and sundial.

Sculptor Lee O. Lawrie (1877-1963)
Another first generation immigrant, Lee O. Lawrie, was selected to design the elaborate marble sculptures that adorn the Tower. Born in Rixdorf, Germany, Lawrie was a self-taught sculptor who earned a bachelor of fine arts from Yale and taught there until 1919. He received eight national architectural and sculptural awards and emerged as one of the nation’s foremost stone sculptors specializing in Gothic Revival themes. Some of his most famous works are the “Atlas” statue at Rockefeller Center in New York City and the famous sculpture of George Washington that stands in Cleveland Park in Washington, D.C. and the Nebraska State Capitol.

Lawrie’s series of Tower sculptures represent themes of nature, humanity, the Bible and philosophy. The sculptural details are mostly comprised of American birds and plants, along with depictions of a man sowing a garden, a man feeding cranes, Adam and Eve and the serpent. Upper balconies feature carved eagles with folded wings, and the panels depict doves carrying laurel or oak branches as symbols of peace, goodwill and strength. Besides various flowers and trees, there are cranes, herons, eagles, seahorses, jellyfish, fin fish, peacocks, pelicans, flamingos, geese, swans, fox, storks, tortoise, hares and baboons.

Metalworker Samuel Yellin (1885-1940)
Born in Galacia, Poland, Samuel Yellin studied art in Europe and moved to Philadelphia in 1906. He founded Samuel Yellin Metalworkers in 1909 and became a major figure in the early 20th century Arts movement and one of the most admired designers of decorative ironwork.

Specializing in Renaissance-style iron sculpture and design, Yellin’s works can be found at the Federal Reserve Bank in New York City; Philadelphia’s Packard Building; numerous churches throughout the nation including Washington National Cathedral and on the campuses of America’s most prestigious universities including Yale, Columbia, Princeton and Harvard.

Bok enlisted Yellin, America’s premier metalworker, to create several elements to adorn the carillon Tower. Yellin designed the brass door and the wrought iron gates on the north side of the Tower. The great door depicts the Biblical story of creation, the Book of Genesis, starting with the creation of light and ending with Adam and Eve being banished from the Garden of Eden. The iron gates leading to the Tower were hand-wrought and feature birds with various expressions and wings for flight. Lawrie’s sundial on the south side of the Tower features a bronze snake, the ancient symbol of time as well as the 12 signs of the zodiac to mark the 12 months of the year and Roman numerals to mark the hours of the day. The gnomon casts a shadow on the dial face to indicate the time. At the bottom of the sundial are the words from President Calvin Coolidge’s speech, “dedicated and presented for visitation of the American people” that commemorate the 1929 dedication of the Gardens.

J. H. Dulles Allen
J. H. Dulles Allen, founder of Enfield Pottery and Tileworks, near Philadelphia, created the massive, intricate and colorful tile grilles that adorn the openings of the bell chamber allowing the sounds of the bells to fill the Gardens. Dulles Allen also designed the Tower and the tile floor of the Founder’s Room just inside the Tower. Through skillful craftsmanship of metal and tile, Dulles Allen transformed trees, birds, turtles and other plants and animals into a unique piece of art. The colorful tiles found only in the top third of the Tower depict the perfect balance between nature, species and gender. In addition to his work at the Gardens, Dulles Allen’s work can be seen at the Organization of American States building in Washington, D.C., and the Reynolda House (in the Museum of American Art) located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

John Taylor Bellfounders
John Taylor Bellfounders, Ltd. of Loughborough, England, cast the bells of Bok Tower Gardens’ famed carillon. The company has been making bells since the middle of the 14th century and remains today one of the largest bell foundries in the world.

Taylor’s five-tone principle of bell tuning produces a unique purity and sweetness of tone and allows the bell to sound with a fullness and mellowness that sets Taylor bells apart from all other cast bronze bells. The firm is the creator of the largest bell in Britain, which hangs in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Taylor bells also ring throughout the world at the Washington National Cathedral, the Chapel at Duke University in North Carolina; the City Hall in Cape Town, South Africa; and in Sydney and Canberra, Australia.

The Carillonneurs
With only 200 carillons in the United States, professional carillonneurs are an elite group. Bok Tower Gardens has had only four carillonneurs since 1928. The Gardens’ first carillonneur, Anton Brees, served from 1928 until 1967, the second, Milford Myhre, carillonneur emeritus, served from 1968 to retirement in 2004 after 36 years. In 1991, Terrance McKinney served as the Gardens’ first assistant and was succeeded by William De Turk in 1993.

De Turk was appointed director of carillon services effective July 1, 2004. A native of the Philadelphia area, he received a bachelor of music degree cum honore from Heidelberg College in Tiffin, Ohio, and a Master of Music degree from the University of Michigan. In 1974, he was the first carillon scholar at the Bok Singing Tower. De Turk was carillonneur (1981-87) for the University of Michigan and hosted the 1986 World Carillon Congress, the first held in North America. His activities in The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America (GCNA) include four years as president and archivist since 1972. He has performed recitals throughout the United States, Canada and Europe and received many honors including the Berkeley Medal from the University of California at Berkeley for distinguished service to the carillon. In August 2005, Lee Cobb was appointed assistant carillonneur and librarian of the Anton Brees Carillon Library. Cobb is an accomplished carillonneur as well as a commissioned and published composer.

Reciprocal Gifts of Appreciation
Edward Bok gave Bok Tower Gardens to America as a gift. That gesture has inspired others to offer special gifts to Mr. Bok to be used in the Gardens. The first gift was from his neighbors in Mountain Lake. They commissioned Lee Lawrie to create an Exedra, the Greek name for a semi-circular seating area, crafted from marble and decorated with distinctive carvings. It is located on the west side of the Sanctuary. Another gift was from Usaburo Tsujita of Japan, who for three years in the early 1920s was an attendant in the Bok family home. He went to Boston in 1925 to learn the shoe business before returning to Japan. Tsujita remained deeply dedicated to Mr. Bok’s ideal of universal peace and brotherhood. After World War II, Tsujita, a man of modest means, began a campaign to raise enough money to commission a nine-foot-tall Japanese memorial lantern. Tsujita sent the lantern to the Gardens in 1955 and requested that it be placed in sight of Bok’s grave so that in his words it could “be my living spirit and serve Mr. Bok forever at his side.”

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About Bok Tower Gardens
Bok Tower Gardens, located approximately 55 miles southwest of Orlando and 60 miles east of Tampa, near Lake Wales, Florida, is open every day of the year from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Visitor Center is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $3 for ages 5-12. Members and children under 5 are admitted free. For more information, call 863-676-1408 or visit www.boktowergardens.org.

During visits from their Pennsylvania residence to their winter retreat near Lake Wales, Florida, Mr. Bok became enchanted with the beauty and vistas from nearby Iron Mountain. At 298 feet above sea level peninsular Florida’s highest point offered views of dramatic sunsets. Awed by the tranquility of the area, Bok wanted to create a place that would “touch the soul with its beauty and quiet,” and chose it as a perfect setting for a bird sanctuary. He purchased multiple residential to transform them into a sweeping landscape of lush gardens featuring a majestic Singing Tower with a carillon. Originally called Mountain Lake Sanctuary and Singing Tower, Bok presented this extraordinary gift in 1929 as an enduring token of his appreciation for the opportunities he had been given.

Today, Bok Tower Gardens is a haven for birds, animals and the human spirit. It blends the beauty of nature and the intrigue of history with an outstanding collection of musical, artistic and architectural masterpieces that enrich the hearts, minds and souls of all who visit. The Gardens features beautifully landscaped gardens, a belltower with a 60-bell carillon and the charming seven and a half-acre Pinewood Estate.

The Gardens’ Visitor Center features permanent exhibits that provide insight and historical perspectives on Edward Bok’s life and influence as well as offerings of the Gardens and a nine-minute orientation film. Also, temporary exhibits showcase artists’ interpretations of Florida’s flora and fauna.

The Gardens
Bok Tower Gardens boasts one of the greatest works of famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. The historic landscape garden was designed to be a contemplative and informal woodland setting offering a series of romantic recesses and tranquil resting spots, picturesque vistas and breathtaking views of the Tower. Acres of ferns, palms, oaks and pines fashion a lush backdrop for flowering foliage and the spectacular seasonal color of azaleas, camellias and magnolias showcasing an ever-changing work of art.

One of the wonderful attributes of the gardens and natural habitats is its wildlife population. It includes 126 different species of birds as well as the threatened gopher tortoise and endangered eastern indigo snake. The Gardens is a designated site on the Great Florida Birding Trail. At “Window By The Pond,” a small observatory overlooking a Florida bog, visitors can watch birds, reptiles, butterflies and native species in their natural habitat. A sign proclaims, “This is nature’s show, not ours. No scheduled performances.” The Pine Ridge Nature Preserve provides a rare opportunity to explore one of the nation’s few remaining longleaf pine-turkey oak habitats. Many of its rare plant species are found no where else in the world.

The Carillon and Belltower
Bok remembered the music of the carillons from his childhood in the Netherlands, and commissioned a Singing Tower and world-class carillon to serve as the focal point of the gardens. Bok Tower Gardens’ carillon is today one of only four in Florida. The 60 bell Taylor Carillon has bells ranging in weight from 16 pounds to nearly 12 tons. Brief recorded carillon music fills the Sanctuary every 30 minutes and concerts are featured daily at 1 and 3 p.m.

The best craftsmen and artisans of the day created the timeless musical masterpiece. Famed Philadelphia architect Milton B. Medary designed a uniquely original 205-foot carillon Tower. Medary’s splendid art deco and neo-Gothic Tower was built using a combination of coquina from St. Augustine, Florida, and pink and gray marble from Tate, Georgia. New York sculptor Lee Lawrie’s sculptural carvings adorn the Tower and represent images of Florida’s native flora and fauna as well as nature-based symbolism and stories from Greek mythology and the Bible.

Pinewood Estate
Bok Tower Gardens visitors are swept back in time when they enter Pinewood Estate. It illustrates one of the finest examples of Mediterranean-style architecture in the state of Florida and surrounding grounds designed by Fredrick Law Olmsted Jr. The enchanting 20-room 1930s manor was originally built as the winter retreat of Bethlehem Steel executive C. Austin Buck. Originally named “El Retiro,” Spanish for retreat the home was designed by Charles Wait. The Gardens’ acquired the estate in 1970 and restored the house and grounds.

Self-guided walking tours of Pinewood are offered daily. The tour price is $6 for adults and $3 for children ages 5-12 and is in addition to the regular admission to the Gardens. Children under age 5 are admitted free.

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About Bok Tower Gardens
Bok Tower Gardens, located approximately 55 miles southwest of Orlando and 60 miles east of Tampa, near Lake Wales, Florida, is open every day of the year from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., last admission at 5 p.m. The Visitor Center is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $3 for ages 5-12. Members and children under five are admitted free. For more information, call 863.676.1408 or visit www.boktowergardens.org.

“Our name needs to convey clearly what we are, especially to attract first time visitors,” explains David Price, president of Bok Tower Gardens. Dedicated in 1929 as a gift of to America from humanitarian, peace advocate and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Edward W. Bok, the National Historic Landmark is one of Florida’s original visitor attractions. “The name Bok Tower Gardens best communicates Bok’s mission to create a place for all to visit to enjoy the beauty of the gardens, nature, tower and the music of the carillon.”

Located on peninsular Florida’s highest point, Bok Tower Gardens features landscape gardens designed by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., the sculpted marble and coquina Singing Tower with its 60-bell carillon and the 1930s Mediterranean-style mansion Pinewood Estate.

“Names are very important,” Price adds. “They describe, conjure images and become part of our vocabulary. We do not take this change lightly, but with much respect to our members, supporters and visitors and will continue to strive to make the institution better and more beautiful because of our work here.”

Bok Tower Gardens is open every day from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. with last admission at 5 p.m. The Visitor Center, Blue Palmetto Café and Tower & Garden Gift Shop are open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $3 for ages 5-12. Members and children under 5 are admitted free. For more information call 863-676-1408 or visit www.boktowergardens.org.