The approximately 30 acres comprising Norfolk Azalea Gardens surround Mirror Lake and constitute the original portion of the 158-acre Norfolk Botanical Gardens, located in the city, just north of the Norfolk International Airport. The azalea gardens were created between 1938 and 1941 by 200 African American women who cleared the land of trees and brush and planted azaleas and other plants. The women were paid for their work through the federal government’s Works Progress Administration. Norfolk city manager Thomas Thompson proposed the idea for the gardens in 1938, during the Great Depression, inspired by the profitable Charleston Azalea Gardens in South Carolina. Under the advisement of Fred Huette, Supervisor of Norfolk’s Parks and Recreation, and with consultation from Charles Gillette, landscape architect, Norfolk secured WPA funds for the project. In 1968, an airport expansion, which only marginally affected the WPA azalea garden, set the stage for the development of the Norfolk Botanical Gardens.