This page was updated June 2026.
Wellesley is home to a couple of beautiful labyrinths, contemplative paths that wind around in a meandering, yet purposeful, circle. There’s one way into the center of a labyrinth and one way out, symbolizing a path to our own center and back out into the world. They’re easy to find and easy to use.
Labyrinths can be used as a meditation or prayer tool, or simply as a thoughtful walk. Technically you follow the path only one way, while your mind perhaps becomes focused or perhaps wanders off. Labyrinth lovers aren’t going to judge you if you quit midway through because you have to get to your next appointment or if you just stop in your tracks, struck dumb by some epiphany. And they certainly aren’t scolders of children who want to freestyle the labyrinth.
Clock Tower Park labyrinth, at Washington St. and Maugus Ave.
Wellesley Hills is home to an outdoor labyrinth in Clock Tower Park. The park itself is on the National Register of Historic Places, and the labyrinth project was brought to bear by the efforts of the Hills Garden Club of Wellesley (HGCW), in conjunction with the town’s Park & Tree Division. The structure, made of large gray granite cobbles, is located on the west side of the park close to a park entrance on Washington Street, and the design interweaves stone and grass within the existing ground plane, creating a contemplative, low-lying and low-maintenance space.
MassHort, Garden at Elm Bank
Wellesley’s newest labyrinth, launched in 2023, is located at the MassHort’s Garden at Elm Bank, 900 Washington St., Wellesley. An adaptation of the 8-ring Chartres, the labyrinth is adapted to enable immediate exit from the center, whereas many labyrinths require retracing the labyrinth path to exit. Guests are invited to join generations who have appreciated these designs by taking approximately 12-15 minutes to follow the path to its center.
Wellesley Village Church labyrinth, 2 Central St.
The labyrinth at Wellesley Village Church at 2 Central St. is painted on the hardwood floor of a small chapel within the church. Renowned labyrinth builder Robert Ferre of Labyrinth Enterprises in St. Louis, Missouri, came to Village Church in August 2003 to draw the 24-foot diameter pattern on the Chapel floor. With Ferre’s guidance, many volunteers from the church membership painted it.
The church generally uses the labyrinth for spiritual purposes, and there probably isn’t a member of their several youth groups who hasn’t given it a try, probably with shoes off, although it’s not necessary to ditch the footwear. That part is just for fun. It’s really all about entering without expectation and leaving without mentally checking off a box of some kind. What’s important is the process and a willingness to simply experience the actions of walking and the mindfulness.The public is welcome to walk the labyrinth, alone or with a group. Just call the church at 781.235.1988 so the chairs can be moved off ahead of time.
Wellesley College Labyrinth—back to nature
The outdoor labyrinth created in 2017 at Wellesley College had a good run, but by 2021, nature had taken it back. “We called it a temporary installation when we built it,” Laura Becker-Lewke, a labyrinth-loving alumna and a major donor for the project. “It was a two-year experiment, and we were committed to using all-organic materials sourced from the college. After a 2015 microburst hit Wellesley, we used trees that were felled from that storm including an historic tree planted by Wellesley College Founders Henry and Pauline Durant.
“During construction, we wondered if we should put up a sign explaining the labyrinth. We decided against it. We felt the power of curiosity would bond students to the labyrinth. When you come upon it it’s a surprise and a curiosity, and we want students to feel like they’ve discovered a wonderful part of campus.”
