Happy 250th Birthday, Orton!
Since* the day*» of "King" Roger Moore — a
heritage of history and beauty. (Azalea
Festival. April 10-13.)
By FRANK O'BRIEN
This is a special year for Orion Plan¬
tation Gardens, a paradisical pocket of
timelessness spanning 250 years of
American heritage and history.
The year is special because the
American Bicentennial observance will
bring a new awareness of the illustri¬
ous history of Orton to all who visit
there, and especially to North Carolin¬
ians who can appreciate that the
Lower Cape Fear was a starling point
in the struggle for American indepen¬
dence.
Orton's popular appeal is its mag¬
nificent gardens and grounds, wide
vistas of color against a background of
giant live oaks and magnolias, and
surrounded with lakes and lagoons.
The focal point is the storied, columned
mansion in classic antebellum architec¬
tural style. The house remains a private
residence, but the spacious lawns and
varied gardens provide visitors with
much to sec and enjoy, every day in
the year. The panorama changes with
the seasons, with the gardens producing
their peak of color in a springtime
splendor between mid-March and
April. But the wide floral variety also
assures brilliant flowering color
throughout the summer and much of
autumn. Even winter has special ap¬
peal.
The calendar of color begins in the
spring with brilliant a/aleas running
the gamut of the rainbow, including the
Kurume and the taller Indica varieties.
In addition, the display includes camel¬
lias. wistaria, flowering fruit trees,
Cherokee and Banksia roses, daphne,
pansies, bulbs, water iris, and Indian
hawthornc. From May through Sep¬
tember. patterns of color include sum¬
mer annuals, oleander, magnolia, hy¬
drangea. crape myrtle, daylilies, and
water lillies. And in the winter, camel-
Thc mention it a private rcjidcncc, bur the
ground» boo»l mon, other point» of intcrc»t
•hieh ore open to the public yeor-oround. 8 to
6, tpring ond lummer; 8 to 5, foil ond winter.
Hugh Morton photo)
lias, except after freezes; daphne, and
ardisia. Winter also finds Orton as a
wildfowl refuge, turning old rice fields
into feeding grounds for thousands of
migrating fowl.
Against this setting. Orton Planta¬
tion's own history adds a storybook
quality to its beauty and appeal. The
famed showplacc of today began its
history and heritage 50 years before the
Revolution, when "King’’ Roger Moore
built a one-story home which could
serve equally well as a stronghold
against Indian attacks.
In the march of events, it felt the
boot of Cornwallis' regiments and raid¬
ing parties in 1776; it became the home
of a Governor of North Carolina, Ben¬
jamin Smith, who was General Wash¬
ington's Aidc-dc-Camp; it was taken
over by Union troops after the fall of
THE STATE. March 1975
