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MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN RECEIVES GRANT FROM NATIONAL PARKS SERVICE FOR INTERPRETATION  

Interpretation will address Garden’s connection with slavery 

(ST. LOUIS) The National Parks Service awarded the Missouri Botanical Garden a grant for an interpretation project connected to the Garden’s historic connection with slavery. 

The $99,920 grant is part of a total of $500,000 in grants awarded to a variety of research, preservation and outreach activities related to the Underground Railroad and freedom seekers.  

“Receiving this grant will enable us to advance our efforts in raising awareness and providing education about a difficult yet vital chapter of history,” said Michelle Martin Bonner, the Garden’s Director of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging. “It will empower our staff to further their impactful work and honor those who bravely risked their lives to escape the inhumane practice of enslavement.” 

The interpretation will be at Tower Grove House, Garden founder Henry Shaw’s historic home.  Historic records show that Shaw owned an unknown number of enslaved people from 1828 until at least 1860. 

Tower Grove House is on Garden grounds and open to the public. New interpretation will provide key information to Garden visitors regarding enslaved people relating to both Henry Shaw and the St. Louis community through programs, interpretive panels, exhibits, and digital engagement. 

“The Garden is committed to making the untold stories about enslaved individuals visible to the community in an accurate the engaging manner,” said Sean Doherty, the Garden’s Vice President of Education. “We have the responsibility to educate our visitors about our challenging history through meaningful and transparent interpretation to foster a deeper understanding across Garden audiences, staff, and volunteers. 

The grant is a continuation of the Garden’s efforts to enhance learning opportunities around its historic connection with slavery. In 2023, the National Parks Service added Tower Grove House to the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. The network includes across the U.S. and Canada that have a verifiable connection to the Underground Railroad. This includes safe houses as well as other locations connected to freedom seeker’s journeys, including kidnapping sites or places from which they escaped enslavement.  

Shaw’s personal papers and newspaper accounts of the time document two separate occasions when freedom seekers enslaved by Shaw escaped from Tower Grove House and sought freedom via the Underground Railroad.  The Garden’s designation recognizes these attempts from enslaved people to flee Tower Grove House and seek freedom. The Garden shares more information about this on its website.  

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The Missouri Botanical Garden’s mission is “to discover and share knowledge about plants and their environment in order to preserve and enrich life.” Today, 166 years after opening, the Missouri Botanical Garden is a National Historic Landmark and a center for science, conservation, education and horticultural display.