Romano Gabriel

Born in Mura, Italy, in about 1887, Romano Gabriel worked as a furniture maker before heading to America at the age of 26. After serving in World War I, Gabriel settled down in Eureka, California, where, he worked as a carpenter and a gardener.

Unable to grow all the flowers he wanted in the Eureka climate, Gabriel began to make flowers out of wooden vegetable crates. Over the next quarter century, he continued to add to his wooden garden, filling his 30 x 60 front yard with carousels, whimsical animals, fantastic trees, Roman soldiers, priests, hula dancers, nurses, sculptures of Italian salami, and caricatures of famous people. He aired his political and anti-papal feelings with signs, written in Italian, and installed figures of the Pope.

When Gabriel died in 1977, local preservationists moved in and claimed all of the carpenter’s work. They transplanted the garden to a two-story glass enclosure in downtown Eureka, which is maintained by the Eureka Heritage Society.