United States of America -- Wisconsin -- Walworth -- Lake Geneva
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets and articles about the house.
General:
Beauty without boundaries is the guiding principle for the more than 50 acre vacation estate. Since it was identified as one of the most beautiful country houses by Ladies Home Journal in 1912 and had gardens landscaped by John Charles Olmsted in 1905, the owners chose to restore rather than renovate when they purchased the property in 1971. The wooded shore of Lake Geneva with rockwork retaining walls transitions into an ornamentally landscaped estate. Drifts of hydrangea, hosta and buckeye at the gated entrance are succeeded by the original concrete driveway through woodland gardens with sugar maple, red oak, white oak, linden, boxwood, ground covers and perennial flowers that include daylilies, bleeding heart, phlox, and rugose roses. The formal drive circle at the house has a fountain in the center and a perimeter of flowering shrubs and variegated ivy topiaries. A grass terrace facing the lake features a rustic planted stone staircase. White roses and hydrangea are accented by a bell placed on an old tree stump. The children's garden has containers of vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs with rustic wattle arches and furniture.
An enclosed courtyard for the swimming pool between the main house and guest house has clipped yew hedges, ground covers and perennials, trumpet, clematis and wisteria vines, and potted citrus trees. Near stands of mature trees planted more than 100 years ago there is a grotto, a mound of soil and stones topped by a statue with a stone bench nearby. One lawn is kept sculpted into a labyrinth. There is a mineral spring on the property, which is said to be restorative, that flows into a fieldstone basin surrounded by a planted rockwork wall. The other formal gardens include a rose garden planted in parterres and enclosed by espaliered apple trees and an organic potager with vegetable, herb and cutting flower beds laid out geometrically on either side of a wide path of stabilized degenerate granite with more espaliered fruit trees on the surrounding wire fence and covering a pergola.
Renovations were required for a disabled family member, including widened and level walkways with very gradual inclines, smooth stone patios and terraces with narrow joints, benches placed where there are good views of the lake, access to the house and swimming pool, and an elevator to the second floor inside the house. Trees in the woodland gardens were replaced as needed and tagged for future reference.
Persons associated with the garden include: Mr. and Mrs. Adolphus Clay Bartlett (former owners, 1905-1930); Colonel and Mrs. William Marvin Spencer (former owners, 1930-1971); John Charles Olmsted (landscape architect, 1905); Howard Van Doren Shaw (architect, 1905); Bartlett Tree Experts (arborists, 2011); Mariani Landscape (landscape architect, 1980- ).
The property was featured in "Ladies Home Journal" in 1909 when it was selected as one of the the twelve most beautiful homes in America.
Related Materials:
House in the Woods related holdings consist of 1 folder (3 35mm slides (photographs); and 21 digital images)
Records related to this site can be found at the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site, Olmsted Job Number 03038, A. C. Bartlett.
See others in:
Richard Marchand historical postcard collection, circa 1900s-1970s, bulk 1920-1940s.
Eleanor Weller collection, circa 1978-2006.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
United States of America -- Illinois -- Lake -- Lake Forest
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets and an article.
General:
The garden at the House of the Four Winds was originally designed circa 1908 by architect Howard Van Doren Shaw and planted the following year by landscape architect Rose Standish Nichols. At that time the property comprised 5.29 acres and was a summer home sited to catch breezes off Lake Michigan. The hardscape designed by Shaw included two long pools or rills on different levels on the longitudinal axis from the house to the exedra and small fountains at the rear of the property. Stone benches and low walls were included in the hard scape design as well as an arched stone and wrought iron gateway. Shaw was said to be inspired by the Generalife Gardens at the Alhambra in Spain, and included water jets in the rills for spray. Rose Standish Nichols designed the formal garden borders in the upper and lower pool gardens as well as another formal side garden to the east. The property was subdivided in 1955, and House of the Four Winds currently comprises almost two acres.
The garden nearly was lost for 50 years until bits of the original hardscape were noticed, which led to the excavation of the two long pools and a complete renovation of blue stone walkways. Trees that had grown over and shaded the formal flower beds were removed. Hornbeam, yew and boxwood hedges and grass walkways outline the redesigned perennial flower beds, limited in color to purples, blues, pinks and whites at the owners' request. A tall boxwood hedge in the upper pool garden is clipped into an undulating shape, while other boxwood are clipped into conical or spherical shapes. There are planted containers at the exedra and near the house, original statues and fountains as well as original stone benches.
This garden was featured in the Garden Conservancy's Open Days directory in 2009.
Persons associated with the garden include Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Johnston McBirney (former owners, 1909-1954); Isabel M. Stimson (former owner, 1954-1955); Mr. and Mrs. Harry N. Bryant (former owners, 1955); Mr. and Mrs. Jack C. Coffey (former owners, 1955-1959); Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wolcott Henry, Jr. (former owners, 1959-1972); Nancy Cummings Henry (former owner, 1972-1974); Howard Van Doren Shaw (architect of house and garden hard scape, 1908); Rose Standish Nichols (landscape architect, 1909-1911); Craig Bergmann (garden restoration, circa 2000 - 2002)
Related Materials:
House of the Four Winds related holdings consist of 1 folder (7 digital prints, 21 digital images + 3 lantern slides)
Additional materials also located in the Lake Forest Public Library, Lake Forest, Illinois.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
United States of America -- Illinois -- Lake County -- Lake Forest
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets, photocopies of published information about the site, and additional information about the house and garden.
General:
Dating to 1912 and originally the home of Mr. and Mrs. Edward L. Ryerson, Haven Wood was a large country estate with several garden areas. Howard Van Doren Shaw was its architect, while Rose Standish Nichols was its landscape architect, with additional design work by Jens Jensen. The design featured long grassy vistas terminating with sculpture and pergolas. Herbaceous plants were used throughout. A large flower garden of rectangular beds was defined by hedge borders and featured a pool and fountain. There was also a terrace with a balustrade. The house is no longer extant.
Persons associated with the garden include Mr. and Mrs. Edward L. Ryerson (former owners, 1912-1930s); Rose Standish Nichols (landscape architect (ca. 1912); Howard Van Doren Shaw (architect, ca. 1912); and Jens Jensen (landscape architect, ca. 1912).
Related Materials:
Haven Wood related holdings consist of 1 folder (5 35 mm. slides (photographs); 3 lantern slides)
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
Greensward of Market Square, The (Lake Forest, Illinois)
United States of America -- Illinois -- Lake County -- Lake Forest
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets, site plans, photocopies of articles about the project, and other information.
General:
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Market Square was the first planned shopping center in the United States. Completed in 1916, the square and its surroundings were showing their age by the late 1990s, when a collaborative restoration project of the "green" in the center of the square was undertaken by the Lake Forest Garden Club, the city, and concerned citizens. The club had played an active role in Market Square landscaping improvements over the years; the current project was given its initial impetus by the club, but was soon transformed into a separate Market Square 2000 project with wide public and city support. With design work by Rodney Robinson Landscape Architects of Delaware, the project was completed in 2000. Features include a flagpole and fountain, sculpture, and various elements of hardscaping, such as brick walkways. On the north and south sides of the square's lawn are fire maples with an underplanting of hydrangea, viburnum, boxwood, and groundcover. West of the flagpole is a rose garden surrounded by an arch of yews, while two European hornbeams are situated in the corners of the rose bed. A low hedge of Alpine Currant (Ribes alpinum) outlines the north and south perimeters of the park.
Persons and firms associated with the garden include Rodney Robinson Landscape Architects (landscape architects, 1996-2000) and Howard Van Doren Shaw (architect, 1913-1917).
Related Materials:
The Greensward of Market Square related holdings consist of 2 folders (6 35 mm. slides (photographs))
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
The folder includes worksheets articles and exceprts from a slide script.
General:
The house was built in 1907 by architect Howard Van Doren Shaw on flat meadow land. In 1907, there was only one tree planted on the entire property. The large pond was a feature. Terraces and lawns surrounded the house with walks leading to and through a series of gardens, notably three called the April, May and June Gardens. The gardens are designed to bloom in those months and be secluded the rest of the year. Plantings included peonies and other plants a suitable to local condititions.
Garden statuary included works by Carl Milles, M. Alfeo Faggi, Edith Barretto Parsons, and Sylvia Shaw Judson.
Katherine Lancaster Brewster was the editor of the Bulletin of the Garden Club of America. She wrote, "The Little Garden for Little Money," 1924 and her garden design style may have been influenced by William Robinson and Gertrude Jeykll.
Persons and groups associated with the garden include: Mrs. Walter J. Brewster and Katherine Lancaster Brewster (former owners, 1920s-30s?), Hoard Doren Shaw (architect, 1907), Carl Milles, M. Alfeo Faggi (sculptor), Edith Barretto Parsons (sculptor), and Sylvia Shaw Judson (sculptor).
Related Materials:
Covin Tree related holdings consist of 1 folder (4 lantern slides)
Garden plan of the property is located at Lake Forest College.
See others in:
Garden Club of American collection, ca. 1920- [ongoing].
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
1 Photograph (lantern slide, hand-colored, 3.25 x 4 in.)
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Lantern slides
Place:
Illinois -- Lake Forest
United States of America -- Illinois -- Lake County -- Lake Forest
Date:
ca. 1933
General:
The house was demolished. Persons associated with the garden include: Rose Standish Nichols (landscape designer).
Historic plate number: "20."
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
United States of America -- Indiana -- Lake County -- Hammond
Date:
1930
General:
The property is a medium sized corner lot that is about two acres. Jens Jenson used native plants and perennials and designed a special cutting garden.
Further sources of information: Keaton, Leonard K. Landscape Artist in America; The Life and Work of Jens Jenson. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, [1964].
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
United States of America -- Ohio -- Summit County -- Akron
Elm Court (Akron, Ohio)
Varying Form:
Also known as Our Lady of the Elms.
General:
11300. A. H. Mark's Mansion, Akron, Ohio. Postcard circa 1901-1945.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, Richard Marchand historical postcard collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid in this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
United States of America -- Wisconsin -- Walworth County -- Lake Geneva
General:
Postcard circa 1907-1915.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, Richard Marchand historical postcard collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid in this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
United States of America -- Wisconsin -- Walworth County -- Lake Geneva
Varying Form:
Also known as Edward Foster Swift House and Edgewood.
General:
Postcard circa 1907-1945.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, Richard Marchand historical postcard collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid in this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
United States of America -- Wisconsin -- Walworth -- Lake Geneva
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets and articles about the house.
General:
Beauty without boundaries is the guiding principle for the more than 50 acre vacation estate. Since it was identified as one of the most beautiful country houses by Ladies Home Journal in 1912 and had gardens landscaped by John Charles Olmsted in 1905, the owners chose to restore rather than renovate when they purchased the property in 1971. The wooded shore of Lake Geneva with rockwork retaining walls transitions into an ornamentally landscaped estate. Drifts of hydrangea, hosta and buckeye at the gated entrance are succeeded by the original concrete driveway through woodland gardens with sugar maple, red oak, white oak, linden, boxwood, ground covers and perennial flowers that include daylilies, bleeding heart, phlox, and rugose roses. The formal drive circle at the house has a fountain in the center and a perimeter of flowering shrubs and variegated ivy topiaries. A grass terrace facing the lake features a rustic planted stone staircase. White roses and hydrangea are accented by a bell placed on an old tree stump. The children's garden has containers of vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs with rustic wattle arches and furniture.
An enclosed courtyard for the swimming pool between the main house and guest house has clipped yew hedges, ground covers and perennials, trumpet, clematis and wisteria vines, and potted citrus trees. Near stands of mature trees planted more than 100 years ago there is a grotto, a mound of soil and stones topped by a statue with a stone bench nearby. One lawn is kept sculpted into a labyrinth. There is a mineral spring on the property, which is said to be restorative, that flows into a fieldstone basin surrounded by a planted rockwork wall. The other formal gardens include a rose garden planted in parterres and enclosed by espaliered apple trees and an organic potager with vegetable, herb and cutting flower beds laid out geometrically on either side of a wide path of stabilized degenerate granite with more espaliered fruit trees on the surrounding wire fence and covering a pergola.
Renovations were required for a disabled family member, including widened and level walkways with very gradual inclines, smooth stone patios and terraces with narrow joints, benches placed where there are good views of the lake, access to the house and swimming pool, and an elevator to the second floor inside the house. Trees in the woodland gardens were replaced as needed and tagged for future reference.
Persons associated with the garden include: Mr. and Mrs. Adolphus Clay Bartlett (former owners, 1905-1930); Colonel and Mrs. William Marvin Spencer (former owners, 1930-1971); John Charles Olmsted (landscape architect, 1905); Howard Van Doren Shaw (architect, 1905); Bartlett Tree Experts (arborists, 2011); Mariani Landscape (landscape architect, 1980- ).
The property was featured in "Ladies Home Journal" in 1909 when it was selected as one of the the twelve most beautiful homes in America.
Related Materials:
House in the Woods related holdings consist of 1 folder (3 35mm slides (photographs); and 21 digital images)
Records related to this site can be found at the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site, Olmsted Job Number 03038, A. C. Bartlett.
See others in:
Garden Club of America Collection, ca. 1920-[ongoing].
Richard Marchand historical postcard collection, circa 1900s-1970s, bulk 1920-1940s.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
