Collection is open for research but Series 11 and films are stored off-site. Special arrangements must be made to view some of the audiovisual materials. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Western Union Telegraph Company Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
United States of America -- Pennsylvania -- Villanova
Scope and Contents:
The folders include a brief description of the garden, a plan that locates different garden features, a slide list, a brochure, and photocopies of images of the garden.
General:
"Appleford is an excellent example of early Pennsylvania farmhouse architecture situated on 22 beautifully landscaped acres in Villanova, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. During the late [1800s], the property was known as Prospect Hill but later became known as Appleford because of the then existing apple orchard. Today, the landscaping and first known gardens on the property consists of a boxwood maze, a walled boxwood garden, a rose garden and fountain, a walled flower garden, and an alleĢe of Cornus kousa trees. Scattered among ponds and streams can be found gorgeous copper beeches, rhododendrons, tropical hibiscus and lantana standards."
"Appleford was originally a land grant by William Penn in 1682 to James Moore and over the years it increased in size to seven hundred and twenty-three acres. In 1926, the house and twenty-two acres were purchased by Annabel and Lewis Parsons at which time the architect, Richardson Brognard Oakie, was engaged to restore the house which gave coherence to the existing structure without compromising its historic integrity. Oakie added the service wing behind the formal boxwood maze and modernized the house with heat and plumbing. He also connected to the main house the tannery, the oldest building on the property, which is now called the puppy house."
"Thomas Sears was hired to draw up landscape plans. At the time there was only a small pond and Sears is responsible for enlarging the pond and adding a pond, the waterfalls, garden and greenhouse. Surrounded by hedges the rose garden also contains a lily pond with a fetching fountain. A few steps up from the rose garden is the walled flower garden which has in it a handsome purple martin house. Steps lead up to the terrace by the house and another set of rounded steps at the opposite end of the garden lead down to a grassy walk near the stream. Looking to the future, a nature walk through the grounds is planned."
"In 1973, Appleford was left by Annabel Parsons' will to Lower Merion Township in trust for the citizens of Lower Merion. Today, the Township works with The Appleford Committee in maintaining the property where wedding receptions and parties are frequently held on weekends. The terrace is now completely tented for these events. The house is open to the public one or two days a year while the grounds are open daily for the Township residents to enjoy."
Persons and firms associated with the property include: James Moore (former owner, received a land grant from William Penn in 1682); Elizabeth and Philip Krickbaum (former owners, 1780); Peter Pechin (former owner, 1794); Moro Phillips (former owner, 1877); Frederick Phillips (former owner, 1893); Villanova Land Co. (former owner); Annabel and Lewis Parsons (former owners, 1926-1973); Thomas Sears (landscape architect, 1926); Richard Brognard Oakie (architect, 1926).
Related Materials:
Appleford/Parsons-Banks Arboretum related holdings consist of 2 folders (22 35 mm. 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.
United States of America -- Massachusetts -- Essex -- Beverly
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets.
General:
The original Massachusetts farmhouse expanded and glorified by architect Henry Davis Sleeper (1878-1934) was demolished but the bones of the late 1920s- early 1930s gardens designed by Arthur Asahel Shurcliff (originally Shurtleff, b.1870-1957) and Sidney Nichols Shurcliff (b. 1906-1981) remain, including the octagon garden, the lily pond and Chinese Chippendale style summer house, the octagonal Williamsburg style tool house, and the painted trompe l'oeil garden alcove. The original vegetable garden is much smaller, now fenced and planted in raised beds, with the rest of that garden room replaced by a swimming pool and pool house after 1980. The latticework fencing and treillage garden house in the octagon garden have been restored and left bare; once they were draped with vines and blue morning glories. Mature shaped yews and hydrangea borders are featured now in place of the old-fashioned flower gardens planted in the 1930s.
In the original design garden rooms surrounded the centrally-located house with paths radiating from that house; the current house is on the site of the carriage house in one corner of the 2.3-acre property, alongside the circular drive designed by the Shurcliffs. A summer porch on the current house overlooks the 75-foot long lily pond and a crabapple orchard that was planted on the site of the Sleeper house. The original pink marble fountain from the old-fashioned garden has new plumbing, the opening to the large lawn has been expanded to admit a riding mower, and the trompe l'oeil garden alcove has been restored.
Persons associated with the garden include: Grace M. Edwards and Hannah M. Edwards (former owners, 1917-1946); Russell and Katharine Burrage (former owners, 1946-1949); John and Florence Lindsay (former owners, 1949-1981); Leslie Huntoon (former owner, 1981-2001); Arthur Asahel Shurcliff (changed from Shurtleff), ASLA (landscape architect, 1928-1932); Sidney Nichols Shurcliff, ASLA (landscape architect, 1929-1932); Henry Davis Sleeper (architect of original house,1928-1932); Alton Bynum (gardener, 1981-2003).
Henry Davis Sleeper was the architect of the original house.
Related Materials:
The Grace Edwards Garden related holdings consist of 2 folders (8 35mm slides (photographs) + 20 digital images)
Archival materials located at Harvard University, Loeb Library, Sidney N. Shurcliff Archive.
See others in:
Lois W. Poinier slide collection, circa 1920-1999.
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 -- Florida -- Sarasota County -- Sarasota
Scope and Contents:
This file contains 18 digital images and 1 folder.
General:
Completed in 2020, this Eastern-inspired garden in St. Armands Key includes various elements indicative of an ancient Persian garden, including a pavilion, water features, and mosaics depicting Islamic Mughal motifs. The design of this 8,731 square foot property is formal and symmetrical. Its name derives from a 1258 poem written by Persian poet, Sa'di. The garden took more than three years to complete, with most of the work being preparatory; the soil had to be replaced, the engineering, plumbing, and electrical work for the garden and central fountain all had to be implemented before they could add the plants, pathways, benches, and medallions. All materials used to create the garden, pavilion, and tile mosaics were sourced in Florida.
The owner has been a docent at the Freer Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution for 30 years, and has remained a scholar of eastern art, architecture, and literature, especially that of the Persian Mughal Empire. In 2009, she purchased a historically designated Mediterranean revival winter home on St. Armands Key and in 2012 purchased the lot next door. Though she had not originally envisioned putting a garden in the space, the idea grew when she met the landscape architect Mario Nievera at a Founders Garden Club of Sarasota Flower Talk in 2016. Her ideal garden was one tailored to the size of the lot, climate and soil conditions of the area of Florida. The owner and Nierva assembled a team including Matt Jackson, the Perez Brothers who created the pavilion, Joyce Hart, an interior designer, Dan Droney, the designer and fabricator of hand-made tiles, and Pat Hebda of Treasure Cove in Sarasota who provided custom architectural elements for the pavilion. The garden owner's daughter contributed by researching details about ancient Persian Gardens.
Surrounding the property is a high, cream-colored, concrete wall with an ornate iron gate marking the entrance. The main focal point of the garden is a 1,000 sq. foot cream-colored limestone pavilion of Persian Mughal-style architecture with a ceiling-high mosaic patterned with Islamic Mughal motifs. This building features three triangular archways facing the front and two archways on either side, with eight columns supporting the structure. The pavilion also operates as a one-bedroom apartment that faces the rear of the property, which was mandated by the city to meet their building code. In front of the pavilion is a central courtyard with a fountain in the center. The design of the fountain is a star lined with blue, yellow, and white tiles, within a quatrefoil of various solid green and patterned tiles. Marble pathways with narrow strips of confederate jasmine in their center lead from the fountain to two elaborate tile medallions on either side of the fountain. The east medallion features a five-clawed Chinese Imperial Dragon on a yellow background, while the west medallion depicts on a blue background, a Simurgh, or mythical bird from Persian mythology. Each medallion is surrounded by a ring of confederate jasmine and a long marble bench on one side. A short marble pathway directly in front of the central fountain leads to a tile Persian rug crafted from handmade red, blue, orange, green, and white, tiles with star and floral patterns.
All plants were carefully considered in terms of their size, color, their perfume, appropriateness to the location, balance and symmetry in the space. The property features three varieties of palm trees, as well as Geiger trees, cypress, citrus, bamboo, and pomegranate. Two vivid colors of Granada roses were used, along with apricot drift, coral drift, and new dawn.
Persons associated with the garden include: John Ringling and Owen Burns t/a John Ringling Estates (former owners, 1917 ā 1948); Arthur Vining Davis t/a Arvida Corp. (former owner, 1948 ā 1976); Kathryn N. Mason (former owner, 1976 ā 1992); Joergen and Maria Haher (former owners, 1992 ā 1996); Bretley and Mona Koth (former owners, 1996 ā 1998); Matthew Gribbon (former owner, 1998 ā 2008); Thomas R. Olin, Jr. (former owner, 2008 ā 2012); Mario Nievera (landscape architect, 2016 ā 2020); Matt Jackman (landscape architect, 2017 ā 2020); Jim Soler (pavilion architect, 2015); Perez Brothers (construction co., 2015 ā 2020); Joyce Hart (interior designer, 2015 ā 2020); Dan Droney (designer/fabricator of tiles, 2018 ā 2020); Pat Hebda (treasure core custom architectural elements, 2015 ā 2020).
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.
New York Central Railroad/Penn Central Railroad Companies Search this
Container:
Bin C-11 (tube 8)
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
12/6/1913
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Grand Central Terminal Collection, dates, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
An account of Mr. Craton's life from his birth on June 23, 1902 to January 1, 1924. Written in 1972, from old letters, genealogical materials collected by Mr. Craton's mother and memory.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Forman H. Craton Collection, 1902-1983, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Sponsor:
Digitization of this collection was made possible by Andrew and Anya Shiva.
