Founded in 1913, by Elizabeth Price Martin and Ernestine Abercrombie Goodman,[1][2] it promotes the recording and enjoyment of American gardens as well as conservation and horticulture.

The foundations for the organization were laid in 1904, when Elizabeth Price Martin founded the Garden Club of Philadelphia.

Among its founding members were author and gardener Helena Rutherfurd Ely (1858–1920) and Henrietta Marion Grew Crosby (1872–1957).

[4] The club also gives out a $5000 scholarship annually for field research and study of wetlands in the United States.

[4] The 18 local branches from Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Illinois that form The Garden Club of America Zone XI support the American Flower Show Series which has been held at Chicago Botanic Garden since 1973.