Gibraltar

Designed between 1916 and 1923 by Marian Coffin for H. Rodney Sharp and Isabella du Pont Sharp, Gibraltar is an Italianate Beaux Arts landscape consisting of a series of garden rooms parallel to the mansion, each with a specific character. The combination of strong geometry softened by the profuse planting more characteristic of an informal English landscape, as well as ornamentation by numerous statues, urns, fountains, and exquisite architectural elements such as hand-forged iron gates and railings, make this  2-acre Wilmington garden an important example of the Country Place Era. A curving marble staircase descends 33 feet from the upper terrace of the residence, through the Flagstone, Evergreen, and Pool terraces below to the color wheel-inspired Flower Garden. Iron gates introduce the walk from the Flower Garden through the 200-foot long Bald Cypress allée to the Italianate garden pavilion. The entry drive is flanked by two generous lawns planted with mature hardwoods, pines and flowering shrubs in an English park-like planting style. As one of a group of du Pont family gardens in the Delaware Valley, Gibraltar offers a glimpse into the garden legacy of this philanthropic family.