Fairy Houses of Mendon Ponds Park

In the fall of 2014, the fairies came to Rochester. They began erecting wee homes along a particular trail in the Tinker Nature Park, a 68-acre reserve. Then, in 2019, the entire fairy village moved a few miles away to Mendon Ponds Park. 

The houses, made by Betsy and Chris Marshall of Rush, New York, pop up in all different styles: a simple door painted onto a tree, grand manors with moving gates and tiny carved beds, and crazily-tilting mushroom homes with little swings for the fairy folk. They were heavily involved in moving the houses after reports of vandalism in their previous homes, where they Marshalls installed them surreptitiously. The couple will continue to maintain the two dozen installations along the popular Birdsong Trail.