Hopelands Gardens

Hopelands Gardens is a 14-acre public garden in Aiken, South Carolina, developed from the winter estate of Hope Goddard Iselin, who planted the property's oaks and cedars and left it to the city upon her death in 1970. Landscape architect Robert Marvin designed the formal gardens in 1974 to draw the community together for special events, and that legacy continues today: garden weddings are popular here, with ceremonies held on the green, near the Joan B. Tower Gazebo overlooking the lake, or at the Promenade Overlook and Reflecting Pools, built on the foundation of the original Iselin residence. The grounds are wrapped behind a serpentine brick wall beneath a canopy of century-old live oaks, deodar cedars, and magnolias, with three fountains, an octagonal brick labyrinth patterned after a 13th-century design at Amiens Cathedral, and a wetlands area crossed by a wooden bridge. The Roland H. Windham Performing Arts Stage sits lakeside and hosts spring and summer concerts as well as weddings. Adjacent to the gardens is the historic Rye Patch estate, a former winter residence restored to its early-1900s character and available for rehearsal dinners, receptions, and private events. Reservations and permits for ceremonies in Hopelands Gardens are arranged through the Friends of Hopelands Gardens and Rye Patch.