A swampy backyard in Illinois seems like an odd place for a world-class Japanese garden. Yet in 1978, John Anderson, son of Swedish immigrants, saw potential where others saw mud.
After a trip to Portland’s Japanese Garden, he hired master designer Hoichi Kurisu to transform his Rockford property. Stone by stone, tree by tree, they built something magical.
By 1992, the Japanese government honored Anderson with a silver cup for promoting friendship between nations…