Search Results

Creator:

W. Atlee Burpee Company  Search this

W. Atlee Burpee Co.  Search this

Burpee, W. Atlee (Washington Atlee), 1858-1915  Search this

Burpee, David, 1893-1980  Search this

Wm. Henry Maule (Firm)  Search this

James Vick's Sons (Rochester, N.Y.).  Search this

Extent:

200 Cubic feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Trade catalogs

Business records

Commercial correspondence

Instructional materials

Ledgers (account books)

Date:

circa 1873-1980

Summary:

The W. Atlee Burpee & Company records, dated circa 1873-1986, document the firm's business activities developing plant varieties, working with contract seedsmen, and marketing and selling seeds. They include seed trial records, seed contracts, sales and acccounting records, inventories, office correspondence, seed catalogs, promotional and instructional materials, advertisements and advertising reports, contest letters, daybooks, photographs, reference materials, and other items relating to the company and some of its competitors. The collection also includes Burpee family papers.

Content Description:

This collection documents W. Atlee Burpee & Co., a mail-order seed company based in Philadelphia, from its early beginnings in 1876 when its founder, W. Atlee Burpee, started in the agricultural business, to the 1970s when his son, David Burpee, sold the firm. The collection also includes personal papers of the Burpee family dating back to the mid-nineteenth century.

Business-related content in the collection consists of crop propagation and management records; company correspondence; administrative and personnel records; advertising files; legal papers; property records and plans; reports, studies, and technical data; notes and drafts; files on professional outreach activities and events; trade literature (published by both the Burpee company and a number of its competitors); and awards and certificates received by the company. Significant topics documented in these files include the development of notable flower and vegetable varieties introduced by the company; the impact of World Wars I and II on gardening and the global seed trade; advertising strategies, technology, and innovation; and David Burpee's advocacy of the marigold as the national floral emblem of the United States.

The Burpee family papers consist of personal files unrelated to the company's business operations. These include records generated by W. Atlee's father (David Burpee, 1827-1882) and grandfather (Washington L. Atlee, 1808-1878), as well as W. Atlee's wife, Blanche (1863-1948); David Burpee (1893-1980) and his wife, Lois (1912-1984); and W. Atlee Burpee II (1894-1966). There are genealogical surveys conducted on both the Atlee and Burpee families as well as clippings about family members. W. Atlee and David Burpee's series are the most extensive, and cover their involvement with numerous social and philanthropic clubs and organizations. The series include personal correspondence; financial, accounting, and tax records; travel-related files; reference material; and will and estate papers.

The Burpee collection also has a large number of images related to the Burpee business and family in a variety of formats including photographs, film and glass plate negatives, and advertisement mock-ups. Other formats include architectural and site plans, original artwork for advertisements, films, cassettes, audio tapes, and ephemera.

Arrangement:

Collection is arranged into six series:

Series 1: Plant/Farm Related Material Series 2: Business Records Series 3: Material Published About the Burpee Company Series 4: Awards and Certificates Series 5: Photographic and A/V Materials Series 6: Burpee Family Papers

The collection's original order was maintained wherever possible, though many records were found scattered throughout the collection and artificial files were necessarily created for them.

Most files are arranged chronologically or alphabetically by person or topic.

Various photographs interspersed in correspondence files were kept where they were originally found. All other photographic and audio/visual materials found on their own were grouped in Series 5 Photographic and A/V Material which documents aspects of both the Burpee company and Burpee family.

Biographical / Historical:

Washington Atlee Burpee (1858-1915) began a mail-order poultry and livestock business in 1876 in Philadelphia, which he soon expanded to include corn seed for chicken feed. In 1878, he founded W. Atlee Burpee & Co. to sell livestock and vegetable, fruit, and flower seeds through the mail. His company went on to become one of the most notable seed distributors in the world.

In 1888, W. Atlee bought a tract of land named Fordhook Farms in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. It was initially established as an experimental farm to test and evaluate new varieties of vegetables and flowers and to produce seeds for the mail-order market. Burpee spent many summers traveling throughout the United States and Europe visiting farms and searching for the best flowers and vegetables. Certain plants he found were shipped back to the firm for testing and propagation; other seeds were obtained through contracts with growers throughout the U.S., a practice common in the seed industry at that time. Promising varieties were bred with healthier specimens to produce hardier hybrids that were more resistant to disease. Other Burpee trial grounds were later established at Sunnybrook Farm near Swedesboro, New Jersey, and at Floradale Farms in Lompoc, California (1909/1910). The company went on to purchase more land for farming in California, and established sales branch headquarters in Sanford, Florida (circa 1930s), Clinton, Iowa (1942), and Riverside, California (1949).

W. Atlee Burpee married Blanche Simons (1863-1948) in 1892. They had three sons: David (1893-1980); W. Atlee Jr. ("Junior") (1894-1966); and Stuart Alexander (1901-1934). Both David and Junior attended the Blight School in Philadelphia for elementary school and Culver Military Academy in Culver, Indiana for preparatory school. While they both attended Cornell University as undergraduates, they left before graduating due to W. Atlee's poor health. Junior married Jeanetta Lee (1893-1981) in November, 1916, and they had two children: W. Atlee III (1917-1971) and Jeanette (1919-2002). David married Lois Torrance (1912-1984) in 1938, and they had two children: Johnathan (b. 1941) and Blanche (b. 1943). Stuart Alexander was apparently born with a disability; according to census records he worked on farms during his lifetime.

David Burpee took over the family business upon his father's death in 1915; W. Atlee Burpee, Jr. served as treasurer of the firm once he returned from serving in the military. At that time, the Burpee company had 300 employees and was the largest mail-order seed company in the world. It distributed over one million catalogs a year and received on average 10,000 orders a day. Under David's tutelage, the company adapted to contemporaneous shifts in business and advertising methods, advancements in plant science, ever-changing consumer demands, and two World Wars. In response to food shortages experienced during World War I, the Burpee company helped promote a "war gardens" campaign that evolved into a "victory gardens" campaign during World War II.

Both W. Atlee and David used their position as head of a major seed house to lobby congressional debates in regard to two topics: postage rates (W. Atlee) and the designation of a national floral emblem for the United States (David). Both men belonged to The Union League of Philadelphia and The Canadian Society of Philadelphia (which W. Atlee helped found), and served on the boards of directors for hospitals and other charitable organizations. Both father and son were politically aligned with the Republican Party.

The firm reorganized its governing structure in 1917 at which time it changed its name from W. Atlee Burpee & Co. to W. Atlee Burpee Co. Burpee's acquired three seed companies between 1878 and 1970: Luther Burbank Seed Company, James Vick's Seeds, Inc., and the William Henry Maule Company. David Burpee sold the company to the General Foods Corporation in 1970 and served as a consultant for the business until 1973. The Burpee brand was bought by its current owner, George J. Ball, Inc., in 1991.

Related Materials:

Burpee seed catalogs donated to the Smithsonian in 1982 by the W. Atlee Burpee Co. can be found in the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives' Trade Literature Collection at the National Museum of American History.

The Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection in the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division includes a series of images of Burpee company operations taken in 1943.

The Black Gold Cooperative Library System's Asian/Pacific - Americans on the Central Coast Collection includes images dated 1933-1939 of Japanese employees of the Burpee Co. working at Floradale Farms in Lompoc, California.

Restrictions:

Access to original images 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.

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 the Archives of American Gardens.

Topic:

Seed industry and trade  Search this

Mail-order business -- Catalogs  Search this

Gardens -- United States  Search this

Horticulture  Search this

Vegetables  Search this

Trial gardens  Search this

Victory gardens  Search this

Prize contests in advertising  Search this

Advertising, Newspaper -- 20th century  Search this

Advertising, magazine -- 20th century  Search this

Flower shows  Search this

Genre/Form:

Trade catalogs

Business records

Commercial correspondence

Instructional materials

Ledgers (account books)

Citation:

Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, W. Atlee Burpee & Company Records

Identifier:

AAG.BUR2

See more items in:

W. Atlee Burpee & Company Records - Accretion 2

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Gardens

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aag-bur2

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 3, Folder 25

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref101

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 4, Folder 2

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref103

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 4, Folder 8

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref109

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 5, Folder 1

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref130

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 6, Folder 11

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref166

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 6, Folder 24

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref179

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 7, Folder 3

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref184

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 7, Folder 6

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref187

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 7, Folder 10

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref191

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 1, Folder 19

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref32

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 1, Folder 23

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref36

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 1, Folder 29

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref42

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 2, Folder 28

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref73

Collection Creator:

Morehouse, Harold E., 1894-1973  Search this

Container:

Box 3, Folder 15

Type:

Archival materials

Text

Collection Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Collection Rights:

Permissions Requests

Collection Citation:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies Collection, Acc. XXXX-0450, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

See more items in:

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection

Harold E. Morehouse Flying Pioneers Biographies collection / Series 1.1: Biographies of Flying Pioneers 1.1

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-nasm-xxxx-0450-ref91

Object Name:

Mortar

ID Number:

MG.304606.209

Accession number:

3.304606

Catalog number:

3.304606.209

See more items in:

Medicine and Science: Medicine

Data Source:

National Museum of American History

GUID:

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a9-4618-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:nmah_1090684

Maker:

VLI Corporation  Search this

Physical Description:

paper (overall material)

Measurements:

overall: 25.3 cm x 17.9 cm; 9 31/32 in x 7 1/16 in

overall: 25.3 cm x 17.9 cm; 9 31/32 in x 7 1/16 in

overall: 25.3 cm x 17.9 cm; 9 31/32 in x 7 1/16 in

Object Name:

booklet

Place made:

United States: California, Irvine

Date made:

1986

ID Number:

1998.3139.02

Catalog number:

1998.3139.02

Nonaccession number:

1998.3139

See more items in:

Medicine and Science: Medicine

Data Source:

National Museum of American History

GUID:

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b3-1155-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:nmah_1835127

Provenance:

Kettle Moraine Garden Club  Search this

Landscape architect:

Bushey, Donald John  Search this

Collection Creator:

Garden Club of America  Search this

Type:

Archival materials

Place:

United States of America -- Wisconsin -- Waukesha County -- Hartland

United States of America -- Wisconsin -- Waukesha County -- Hartland

Rosecrest (Hartland, Wisconsin)

Scope and Contents:

16 digital images (2017-2018) and 1 file folder with historical images and other information.

General:

The first residence on this property was a log cabin built circa 1840 by a Swedish settler; there is local lore that remnants of his building were found when the sunken garden was installed in the 1920's. This ten-acre property established in 1926 was part of a larger farm followed by a family compound on Pine Lake. Donald John Bushey designed the sunken garden, which required extensive excavation, with a long pergola and a row of seven large arches. In 1995 the garden was redesigned and refurbished and the owners kept the historic, formal elements in situ, had the gardens replanted in time for a family wedding, then finished their new house. Rosecrest now includes the sunken garden with a 110-foot long pergola, one new and one restored pond with fountains, elaborately patterned parterres and statuary with deep mixed borders and towering trees around the perimeter of the lawn. Additional historic features that were retained are stone pillars and several stone benches.

Roses, for which the garden was named, were a prominent part of the landscape until depredations by local deer necessitated changes to the plant material. Knockout and David Austin shrub roses are grown still. In 2018 existing shrubs included several vibernums, winterberry, boxwood, hemlock and sumac; existing trees included several varieties of cedar, pine, spruce and maple, also crabapple, gingko, linden and plum. Dozens of perennials and annuals fill the grid of parterres and the deep borders. The sunken garden has been opened for many charity fundraisers, three garden tours, wedding photo shoots, and many family events.

Persons associated with the garden include: Gustaf Unionius (former owner, 1840-1841); Albert Chapman (former owner, 1841-1895); the Mayer family (former owners, 1895-1991); Donald John Bushey (1896-1966) (landscape architect, designer of sunken garden, 1925-1926)(Hawks Landscape Co. (garden design, 1995); Janet Gamble, Meg Miller, Al Holt, Steve Wege, Joe Pauley (gardeners and landscapers, no dates available); Lee Kaster (gardener,1977-1984), Liban's Landscaping (landscape maintenance, 2018- ); Judith Stark Landscape Architects (patio landscape, no dates available); Wachtel Tree Science (arborists, 2018- ).

Collection Restrictions:

Access to original images 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.

Topic:

Formal gardens  Search this

Collection Citation:

Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.

Identifier:

AAG.GCA, File WI057

See more items in:

The Garden Club of America collection

The Garden Club of America collection / Series 1: United States Garden Images / Wisconsin

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Gardens

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-aag-gca-ref32876

Former owner:

Tanner Family  Search this

Gardner, Samuel F.  Search this

Lawton, Robert  Search this

Lawton, Penelope  Search this

Austin, Samuel Reverend  Search this

Henderson, Francis  Search this

Brinley, Fanny S.  Search this

Lawrence, Sallie C.  Search this

Paul, Allen G.  Search this

Paul, Florence S.  Search this

Warren, George  Search this

Warren, Katherine Urquhart  Search this

Preservation Society of Newport County  Search this

Gardener:

Pleitez, Eusebio  Search this

Landscape designer:

Tunnard, Christopher  Search this

Provenance:

Newport Garden Club  Search this

Collection Creator:

Garden Club of America  Search this

Type:

Archival materials

Place:

Warren House-Tunnard Garden (Newport, Rhode Island)

United States of America -- Rhode Island -- Newport -- Newport

Scope and Contents:

The folder includes worksheets, site plans, photocopies of articles.

General:

This Modernist garden was created right after World War II, designed by Christopher Tunnard. It still survives today, perhaps the only existing commissioned landscape design by the man who influenced many of the United States most celebrated postwar architects and landscape architects. At only 65' x 42', the garden has an extreme austerity in design with a hint of luxury in its fountains, thick hedges and sculpture. The plants are cut and trimmed into an ordained shape, and the pattern is designed to be seen from the ground, where its curves interlock and turn back on themselves. Only two kinds of trees are used - lime (Tilia) and arbor vitae (Thuja); and three kinds of permanent plants - ivy (Hedera), box (Buxus) and yew (Taxus). The lime trees will eventually be pleached into an architectural block to throw the ground pattern into even greater contrast. The ivy is in slightly raised mounds, edged in places with small summer flowers. The bedding plants are purple and white petunias with carnations and lemon-yellow thunbergias." The sculpture, 'Chimerical Font,' by Jean Arp, is golden bronze centered on a plinth in a black lacquered rectangular pool. The other pools (two circular, one biomorphic) are shallow and painted white. Of note are the unusual shapes of the pruned boxwoods in the shapes of question marks and semi-colons; the colorful flowers; and the 6th linden along the left and end wall, now covered in Boston ivy, and originally painted white to complete a design that very much relied on strong figure-ground relationship.

Christopher Tunnard (1910-1979) was born in Canada, moved to England in 1929 and received a diploma from the Royal Horticultural Society the following year. The period of the eclectic Arts and Crafts movement (which he characterized as "romantic trivialization" of garden design) prompted him to introduce his Modernist views of landscape design. This approach avoided decoration, sentimentality and classical allusion "in favor of functional minimalist designs that provided a friendly and hospitable milieu for rest and recreation." After 10 years practicing garden and landscape work, he immigrated to America at the invitation of Walter Gropius to teach at Harvard's Graduate School of Design (1938-1943). Following the War, Tunnard taught city planning at Yale, advancing to professor and chairman of this department; he did little garden design from that point forward, making this 1949 garden probably one of his last commissions. For the final thirty years of his life, Tunnard put his energies into urban planning and the preservation of historic buildings; his publications in this area include "Man-made America: Chaos or Control?" (1963) which won the 1964 National Book Award in Science, Philosophy and Religion. It is perhaps ironic that Christopher Tunnard ended up of very much the same sentiment as his American patron, Mrs. George W. (Katherine) Warren, founder of the Preservation Society of Newport County (1945). In "Pioneers of American Landscape Design," (2000), Lance Neckar notes that "by the time of his death, he had come full circle to be identified with conservation-and-preservation-oriented attributes toward city revitalization which were antithetical to the Modern movement" that Tunnard had originally espoused.

Tunnard's patrons, George and Katherine Warren, who purchased the property on Mill Street in 1933, chose a part of Newport that was then considered "the other side of the tracks" by their social set, most of whom resided out on Ocean Drive. In New York, where the couple lived "off season," Katherine Warren collected modern art and was on the Advisory Committee of the Museum of Modern Art. Interesting to note that the garden was commissioned in 1949 and distinguished by its functional, minimalist modern design in sharp contrast with its early Federal-style house. The Warrens also added two glass-enclosed rooms on the first and second floors of their home on the garden side, presumably to enjoy this new garden to its full extent. Mrs. Warren died in 1976, bequeathing her home to the Preservation Society of Newport County, which moved its offices to this location in 1977. While the Preservation Society of Newport County owned the property, the garden was heavily shaded by a large beech tree and had become overgrown. It was maintained as they found it without major renovation. The current owner moved into the Mill Street house in 1994 and restored the Tunnard garden in 2001 and has proven to be a conscientious caretaker of this rare, nationally significant garden.

Persons associated with the garden include Tanner Family (former owners, 1776-1807); Samuel F. Gardner (former owner, 1807-1809); Robert Lawton (former owner, 1809-1810); Penelope Lawton (former owner, 1810-1822); Reverend Samuel Austin (former owner, 1822-1826); Francis Henderson (former owner, 1826-1857); Fanny S. Brinley (former owner, 1857-1863); Sallie C. Lawrence (former owner, 1863-1886); Allen G. Paul (former owner, 1886-1916); Florence S. Paul (former owner, 1916-1932); George and Katherine Warren (former owners, 1932-1977); Preservation Society of Newport County (former owner, 1977-1994); Christopher Tunnard (landscape designer, 1949); Eusebio Pleitez (gardener, 2001- ).

Related Materials:

Warren House-Tunnard Garden related holdings consist of 1 folder (10 digital images)

Additional photographs are also located in the collections of the Preservation Society of Newport County.

Collection Restrictions:

Access to original images 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.

Topic:

Gardens -- Rhode Island -- Newport  Search this

Collection Citation:

Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.

Identifier:

AAG.GCA, File RI201

See more items in:

The Garden Club of America collection

The Garden Club of America collection / Series 1: United States Garden Images / Rhode Island

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Gardens

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-aag-gca-ref10575

Provenance:

Garden Club of Houston  Search this

Garden Club of Houston  Search this

Owners:

Houston Independent School District  Search this

Creator:

Karavias, Kellie  Search this

Burton, Carol  Search this

Collection Creator:

Garden Club of America  Search this

Type:

Archival materials

Place:

United States of America -- Texas -- Houston -- Houston

Gregory Lincoln Education Center (Houston, Texas)

Scope and Contents:

16 digital images (2015-2017) and 1 file folder.

General:

Gregory-Lincoln Education Center is a fine arts magnet pre-K through 8th grade school on a 15- acre campus with many low-income and food-insecure students. In the 2011-2012 school year 14 raised gardens beds for vegetables, berries and herbs were installed and planted; the curriculum is called the Cultivated Classroom. Students grow organic food that they prepare and eat while learning about sustainability, science, math, reading, social studies and nutrition. Staple crops include squashes, tomatoes, cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage and cauliflower, berries, lettuces, beans and okra, some flowers and herbs. Other vegetables are planted each year on a trial basis. The initial garden has been expanded to include four more raised beds, 20 fruit trees, a chicken coop called The Chick-Inn, a grape arbor at the entrance, and a pollinator garden. The lay-out includes a reading circle, tool shed, compost center, picnic tables, a wash station and benches. Learning about healthy eating is an important aspect of the program, including acquiring food preparation skills for a lifetime, and cooking and learning about careers in the food industry at a nearby restaurant. Helpers in the garden include school staff, Urban Harvest employees, parents, and neighborhood volunteers who participate in a monthly "dig-it" day of weeding, mulching, and additional planting. The Garden Club of Houston supports this program through financial contributions to Urban Harvest, a non-profit that promotes community gardens.

Persons associated with the garden include: Houston Independent School District (owners, 1966- ); Urban Harvest (sponsor, 2011- ); Kellie Karavias (culinary arts teacher, 2011- ); Carol Burton (Urban Harvest coordinator, 2011- ) Names (role and dates of ownership/involvement). Example: Metropolitan District Commission (playground, Victory Garden, 1953- ); City of Cambridge (Morse School, 1953- ); Carl Koch (1912-1998) (architect, 1955); Design Partnership of Cambridge (renovation architects, 1999); Jane Hirschi, Director of City Sprouts (non-profit assisting in creating and maintaining school garden, 2001- ); Patricia Beggy (Morse school principal, 2004- ); Juliet and György Kepes (enamel panels artists, 1957); Tomie Arai (silk-screened mural artist, 1999).

Collection Restrictions:

Access to original images 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.

Topic:

Gardens -- Texas -- Houston  Search this

Collection Citation:

Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.

Identifier:

AAG.GCA, File TX199

See more items in:

The Garden Club of America collection

The Garden Club of America collection / Series 1: United States Garden Images / Texas

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Gardens

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-aag-gca-ref32840