The first organized Rose Show in the nation was held in the Bishop Scott Academy drill hall in May 1889. Organized by the Trinity Womens Guild, that show was the precursor to what is now Portland's annual Rose Festival.
The plaque in the courtyard, placed by the Lang Syne Society of Portland in May 1966, commemorates the event. In 1889 when the first Rose Show was held, the drill hall was located about 200 yards southwest of where the plaque is located. The drill hall was moved to where Kempton Hall now stands sometime around 1904 and served as Trinity’s parish hall for many years.
