Summer 2018: ‘Summit Hill Gardens’ Sneak Peek!

Fall in Love at Summit Hill Gardens

There’s just something about Summit Hill. It captivated Patsy Smeed from the very beginning.

Photo courtesy of Hope’s Perspective Photography

She moved there – one acre of land south of Chanute, the site of an old one-room schoolhouse – more than 40 years ago with her late husband Larry, an artist and professor. All these years later, she still hasn’t left.

“I just fell in love with Summit Hill,” she says. “It’s been a lot of great therapy for me.”

Since her arrival, Patsy has slowly expanded her land from one acre to 65 acres. The sprawling property is much more than her home or the location of a historic schoolhouse: It’s also the site of her business, Summit Hill Gardens, which offers a soap shop (all products Patsy makes herself) and wedding venue/event center in partnership with her sister-in-law Gretchen Brant.

No matter what brings people to Summit Hill Gardens, they often leave captivated by the place – just like Patsy.

“We want people to feel that this is a very peaceful part of the world,” Patsy says. “Just a little bit of Eden.”

Want to keep reading about Summit Hill Gardens? Check out the summer issue of Southeast Kansas Living, out now! It includes this story in its entirety, plus so much more. Subscribe now, or contact us to find a newsstand near you.

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