Bok Tower Gardens | Florida
Family Motor Coaching Magazine | February 1990
Hauntingly, dense gardens envelop the singing tower. Surrounded
by a moat, the tower stands locked behind iron gates, its creator's
grave lying before its massive brass door. Swans bask in the reflecting
pool that encircles it.
Bok Tower Gardens, with its sweeping vistas and majestic tower, is
a classic — indeed, one of Florida's most famous landmarks. It is a
veritable garden of quietude that is not only a place but an experience.
The gardens seem to be isolated amongst literally acres of orange trees
and to stand alone upon the Florida peninsula's highest point, at an
elevation of 295 feet.
The sanctuary has existed since 1922 when Edwin Bok, a Dutch immigrant,
publisher, and author, bought the first parcels of land. Over a seven-year
span he planted gardens and built the tower that visitors see today.
On February 1, 1929, the tower and grounds were formally dedicated
to the public by President Calvin Coolidge. Bok is buried in front
of the tower's brass door.
The 205-foot-tall, pink-and-gray marble tower is constructed of Georgia marble
and coquina stone from St. Augustine, Florida. This historic structure, which
forms the visual centerpiece of the surrounding 128 acres of gardens, was built
to house a carillon of 57 tuned bronze bells. In fact, Bok Tower ranks as one
of the world's great carillons.
The carillon is composed of a series of bells, the smallest, a treble, weighing
17 pounds, and the largest, the Bourdon, tipping the scales at in excess of 11
tons. The John Taylor and Company Ltd. of Loughborough, England, designed and
installed the carillon in 1928. The carillon bells do not swing when they are
played. Rather, their clappers are connected by wires and levers to a manual
keyboard (a clavier) and to a set of pedal keys located in a sound control room
beneath the bells. To play the bells, the carillonneur strikes the keyboard with
the base of his closed fist or pushes the pedals with his feet, at which time
the mechanical system draws the clappers to the bell's rim, A light touch is
all that is required to play delicate music; thus, the volume is based upon the
force with which the keys are struck. In 1966 the bells that sound the upper
24 treble notes were recast by John Taylor and Company Ltd. to obtain a better
sound quality.
Milford Myhre has played the Bok Tower carillon since 1968. He has studied at
such places as the University of Michigan, the University of Nebraska, and the
Mechlen Carillon School in Belgium. Since 1982, Myhre has served as the president
of the World Carillon Federation. Carillon recitals can be heard daily at 3:00
p.m., while clock music begins on the half-hour starting at 10:00 a.m. In addition,
moonlight recitals, carillon performances by guest artists, and other special
programs take place periodically during the summer and winter seasons. The tower
is even open on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, at which time holiday recitals
are presented.
Bok Tower contains a total of seven working levels within its walls. The upper
level, which is adorned by decorative grillwork, contains the carillon. The structure
also shelters a studio, a workshop, and the Anton Brees Carillon Library of Music.
The tower itself is not open to the public except on special occasions or for
guided tours.
The tower's decorative grillwork appears in a series. The lower stage
of designs depict the lower order of life, including creatures of
the sea and water; the second stage illustrates life found on land,
including man; and the third stage of grilles represents Bok imagination
and fancy, Eight grilles measuring 35 feet tall enclose the bell chamber
in the upper one-third of the structure. The carved grilles are evenly
spaced in screens and thus allow the music to flow freely from the
tower.
An enormous sundial is carved on the south wall of the tower, which gives the
structure's exact location in latitude and longitude. The sundial is known as
an erect declining dial, for it is vertically positioned at an exact right angle
to the surface of the earth. The dial is tilted east by four degrees, 20 minutes.
A chart at its base gives the difference between sun and clock time for each
day in its latitude location. Curved lines across the dial indicate days and
months. A triangular piece with a serpent motif casts shadows from the sun, delineating
the hours by full lines and the half hours by short lines. The dial itself is
surrounded by the figures of the zodiac and ancient mythological characters.
The tower's brass door is graced by 30 panels that depict the Biblical story
of creation and the fall of man.
The gardens generally surround the tower itself and contain thousands of azaleas,
camellias, magnolias, and other flowering plants, which provide seasonal vistas
of color against the lush backgrounds of ferns, palms, oaks, and pines. Close
to the tower stands Lake Pierce Vista, a lookout that affords visitors views
of the flatness of the land from its highest point. The view looks down upon
what once was the ocean floor more than a million years ago. Under these gardens
lie geological levels containing fossils — not only the teeth of sharks, but
also the remains of mastodons, dinosaurs, camels, lions, and tigers.
Of interest to bird-watchers, Bok lower Gardens is home to 126 wild bird species
as well as to a colony of wood ducks. Numerous trails wind through the park,
and a pond-nature observatory offers visitors a windowed view from which to
observe kingfishers, egrets, and herons fishing among the islands of vegetation.
When visiting Bok Tower Gardens, be sure to wear comfortable shoes,
as most of the trails take approximately 20 minutes to complete,
though totally at one's own leisure. The park also provides scenic
picnic areas, a pet facility, and free use of wheelchairs and strollers.
Group tours are available; however, reservations are required.
After exploring the tower and gardens, stop in at the visitors center,
where one can view a 10-minute audiovisual program. The visitors center
also contains a small museum, a gift store, and
a cafeteria that offers light meals and refreshments.
The Lake Wales area abounds with campgrounds that lie within approximately a
10-mile radius of Bok Tower Gardens. Some of the closest campgrounds include
Camp And Air, Camp Inn Resorts, and Lake Wales Campground, all three located
on U.S. 27 South; Citrus Hills RV, located on State Route 60; Cypress Gardens
Family Campground, located on Lake Daisy Road; and Cypress Gardens Mobile Park,
located on Cypress Gardens Road. These facilities are located conveniently
near Bok Tower Gardens and Cypress Gardens.
If you're interested in spending a quiet afternoon and enjoying the true beauty
of Florida for a great price, escape to Bok Tower Gardens. Doing so will be a
memorable experience, a part of true Florida that the whole family can enjoy.
For more information about Bok Tower Gardens, including a
schedule of upcoming carillon performances, contact the facility
at P.O. Box 3810, Lake Wales, FL 33859-3810; (813) 676-1408.
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