Verna Cook Garvan

Verna Cook Garvan (1910-1993) was a business woman and philanthropist in the state of Arkansas. Her main business holdings included the Wisconsin & Arkansas Lumber Company, and Malvern Brick and Tile Company. She is the founder and benefactor of Garvan Woodland Gardens in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Garvan was born Verna Cook in Groveton, Texas, in 1910. She was the daughter of Arthur Bacillus Cook and Essie Louise Bordis Cook, and had one sister, Dorothy. The Cook family relocated to Malvern, Arkansas, in 1916, where the girls were primarily raised. Arthur Cook managed the Wisconsin & Arkansas Lumber Company and later Malvern Brick and Tile, and consequently exposed Verna to business matters at a young age. For secondary education Verna and Dorothy attended Holton-Arms girls' school in Washington, D.C.

Shortly after her father died in a tragic car accident, Verna Cook wed Alonzo "Lonnie" B. Alexander on October 1, 1934. Fourteen years her senior, Alexander was a United States Naval Academy graduate and member of a prominent business family in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The couple relocated to South Carolina and had one son, Arthur Cook Alexander. Arthur was born with cystic fibrosis and his health demanded great attention from his mother to manage his care. During a period of marital discord Verna moved to Florida with Arthur, believing it would aid his poor health. Arthur did not fare well in the Florida climate and eventually left his mother to attend school in Arizona for its drier climate. He remained in Arizona until his death in November 1954. In 1956, Verna's marriage to Lonnie Alexander ended in divorce, after two years of legal proceedings regarding Verna's stake in her late father's business holdings.

Following the death of her son and dissolution of her marriage to Lonnie Alexander, the future Verna Garvan returned to her home in Malvern. She continued to lead management of the Cook family's businesses and soon met her second husband, Patrick Garvan, Jr. The couple wed on June 29, 1960 and chose to remain in Hot Springs where they met. Patrick Garvan's family was socially prominent in New York City, and his parents Francis Patrick Garvan, Sr. and Mabel Brady Garvan donated a significant collection of art and antiques to Yale University. Verna and Patrick planned to build a home on what is now the grounds of Garvan Woodland Gardens, but very little had been constructed when Patrick died in 1972. Garvan remained unmarried and continued her horticultural work, leaving a legacy of nature and education for the people of Arkansas.

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