Originally written by Carl White.
A Visit to the Sam Bridge Nursery
The people there were very friendly. I told them I wanted something that was “dwarfed” and wouldn’t grow too big. The salesman showed me a blue spruce that he said would take years to grow. He helped me put it in my car and off I went. A few days later, a landscaper planted it for me. (I have a very brown thumb, and didn’t want to take a chance of planting it myself!) For years, I used to drive by the sign for Sam Bridge Nursery on North Street. I promised myself that one day I would go in to have a look around. I’ve always loved conifers (cone-bearing trees), and I thought I might like to plant one on my property someday. When my grandson, Kaeden, was born in 2011, I decided to plant a blue spruce in my front yard to mark the occasion. Thought I could take a picture of him standing by the tree every year as he and the tree got bigger. So I headed down to North Street to purchase a tree from Sam Bridge.
Sam Bridge’s Early Life
Sam Bridge, Jr, was born on January 7, 1913, on his family farm in Greenwich. His parents were Samuel Bridge, Sr., and Ethel Walker. Sam and his five siblings worked on their 7-acre farm cultivating potatoes, corn, and peas, which they sold to New York markets. As a young boy, he helped his grandmother with window boxes on the farmhouse located on Doubling Road. At age 15, he began growing and selling plants. At age 16, he built a 10-foot by 10-foot greenhouse on the side of the farmhouse. He graduated from Greenwich High School in 1932 and went to work on several local estates. One of the estates was the Colonel Montgomery Estate, which is now the Montgomery Pinetum Park on Bible Street. He planted and maintained many of the exotic conifers that the Colonel collected from all over the world. The youngster would bring home evergreen cuttings, which he planted in his cow pasture. Eventually, he would sell the grown trees. Later, Sam received a certificate of horticulture from Cornell University, studied at the New York Botanical Gardens, and accepted a scholarship to study at the Kew Gardens in England.
Sam Bridge Comes Home
When World War II broke out, he enlisted in the Army Air Force. He became a propellor specialist on the P41 Mustang aircraft as part of the 72nd Fighter Squadron. Sam served everywhere from Australia to Japan and received 3 Bronze Stars, including one for the Battle of Iwo Jima. During this period, he still found time to investigate the local plant life and send descriptive letters home. When he was discharged in 1946, he had reached the rank of Staff Sergeant.
When Sam arrived back home in Greenwich, he discovered his nursery overgrown with weeds. He had to sell what he could clean out his gardens and plant perennials (plants that live for more than two years). He built a thirty-foot glass greenhouse and started growing seedlings. In 1950, he married Mary Reynolds, whom he had known since their days at North Street School. This would turn out to be very fortuitous since he would be able to move his nursery to some land on the Reynolds Farm on North Street. The couple settled on the Reynold’s farm and traveled back and forth to the Bridge farm on Doubling Road. In 1951, he bought and relocated a greenhouse from an estate in Belle Haven. Eventually, he had 25 greenhouses that he used to grow his favorite plants.
In 1991, there were 1,000 different perennials, annuals, bonsai, orchids, trees, shrubs, and roses in the nursery. They had the area’s only aquatic plant department. Most of the plants were grown from seeds and/or cuttings. You’d also find the plants labeled with Latin names, common names, blooming times, colors, soil, and sun preference.
Sam’s wife, Mary, grew up on the Reynold’s Farm and was no stranger to farm activity. She would help harvest the corn and apples, and take care of the horse. Her family’s farm was purchased from local Native Americans in 1686. Although the farm grew to over 300 acres, pieces were sold off, and the farm is now 19 acres. In 1924, Sylvanus Reynolds, patriarch of the family, sold a large piece of land to St. Mary Church for their cemetery. He also had the family house moved by using greased beams and ropes pulled by a horse or ox. As you can imagine, this took a long time to complete.
Sam and Mary had 3 children: Mary Jo, Sam III, and Ron. Mary Jo earned a certificate in floriculture from the University of Connecticut. She was the bookkeeper and taught workshops at the Greenwich Garden Center at Montgomery Pinetum. Sam III earned a degree in landscape and nursery management from Colorado State University. He was the general manager, responsible for advertising, sales, purchasing, and hiring. Ron was also a graduate of the University of Connecticut, with a degree in nursery management. He operated the nursery’s landscaping service.
The Future of Sam Bridge’s Nursery
The future of the nursery is somewhat cloudy. Land on the farm is valued at $3,000 an acre. Eleven of the 19 acres are valued at a lower rate since it’s classified as farmland. Furthermore, building regulations prevent the Bridges from building special structures to increase output. Higher taxes over time could rise, and the increased volume might be needed to meet these expenses.
The family credits loyal and dependable employees for the success of their business. These people are well-educated in horticulture and enjoy their work. Work is distributed equally and fairly, so no one person gets stuck with the worst chores. The Bridges also pay them very fairly. Sam likes to share his knowledge with everyone and listens to the employee’s ideas and suggestions. In short, they are treated like family.
The Bridges also maintained friendly relations with other horticulturalists in the area. They respect the business and don’t try to pull customers away from the competition. There’s enough business for everyone.
Sam Bridge, Jr, died on October 9, 2010. He was buried in the Second Congregational Church Cemetery. His business continues to flourish as his family continues to work on the land. Hopefully, despite economic pressures, they will continue to provide the excellent service that Sam tried to provide throughout his whole life.
SOURCES
Graves, T; The Sam Bridge Nursery: 300 Years of Tilling the Same Soil; Greenwich Magazine, 1991.igurehance Encounam Bridge III
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