Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site

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Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site

Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site is the home and office of the founder of American lands The grounds are open everyday from sunrise to sunset.

Olmsted (1822-1903) moved his home and office to Brookline in 1883. At his home, Fairsted, he established the world's first full-scale professional office for the practice of landscape design. During the next century, his sons and successors perpetuated Olmsted's design ideals, philosophy, and influence. Guided tours of Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site are seasonal and subject to change. Check our website, nps.gov/frla, for the most up to date hours.

01/09/2026

BONUS/FAREWELL PLAN O' THE WEEK:

1) Plan #2820-69-pt2, "An Act to Regulate the Use of the Capitol Grounds", July 1, 1882, lithograph on paper;
2) Object # FRLA 15801, "Print Drawing of the U.S. Capitol Adhered to Chipboard Mount", n.d.

01/07/2026

PLAN O' THE WEEK: "Mrs. G.W. Norton, Louisville, KY, Details of Masonry at Main Entrance", Aug. 28, 1926, graphite, color pencil/crayon on trace paper

[emphasis on "DETAILS"]

01/01/2026

PLAN O' THE WEEK: "Executive Mansion Grounds, Washington DC, Plan Showing Existing Conditions Immediately about Buildings as of January 1, 1935", March 6, 1935, ink and graphite on draft cloth

12/24/2025

PLAN O' THE WEEK: Claremont Park (now called Sakura Park), across from Grant's Tomb in New York City once hosted a Christmas tree! (From this plan at least.) While not as famous as its fellow fir downtown at Rockefeller Center, the timing is curious: The first official lighting ceremony at Rock Center was in 1933, and this plan was drafted in December 1932, under the sponsorship of none other than ... John D. Rockefeller.

Happy holidays from the folks in the Olmsted Archives!

Plan #527-108, "Department of Parks, Borough of Manhattan, Claremont Park 122nd St. NYC; Electric Light Plan; Prepared For Mr. John D. Rockefeller Jr.", Dec 1932, ink and graphite on draft cloth

12/17/2025

PLAN O' THE WEEK: Gather 'round! Lesson time!
The Olmsteds and their successor firms made big plans. Like, REALLY big plans - towns, park systems, subdivisions, college campuses (to be honest, they also made really big PLANS; the largest we've scanned is over 32' long!).
But the members of the firm also did detail work. This 1914 planting plan is a study in the micro-planning done by the horticulturists on staff. Looking closely, the text block in the bottom half enumerates the specific plantings graphically presented above - almost a "plant-by-numbers".
Plan #5652-104, "Herbert L. Clark, Radnor, PA, Planting Plan for Formal Garden", Sept. 30, 1914, ink on draft cloth

12/10/2025

PLAN O' THE WEEK: Have you ever wanted to live in an Olmsted-designed landscape? Near the historic famed family home of a political dynasty? Well, now you can! For a mere $21.5 million you can own the Hyannis Harbor "cottage" completed in 1916 with formal lawns (extant!) and flower gardens (not so much), initially inhabited and Olmsted work contracted by artist and educator Lucy M. Taggart.

More images from this project can be found at our Flickr page for this job: https://www.flickr.com/photos/olmsted_archives/albums/72157678084390545/

Plan # 6432-6, "Miss Lucy M. Taggart, Hyannis, MA; Preliminary Plan", Apr. 13, 1917, graphite, colored pencil/crayon on trace paper

12/03/2025

PLAN O' THE WEEK: Plan #247-84, "J.J. Albright, Esq., Buffalo, N.Y., Revised Preliminary Plan", June 23, 1904, ink, color ink and graphite on draft cloth

11/26/2025

PLAN O' THE WEEK: A great piece on the Village of Pinehurst - Government and their efforts at honoring Warren Manning's legacy in helping design the town. A lifelong ambition of “making America a finer place in which to live” doesn't sound like a terrible set of lifegoals.

https://www.thepilot.com/news/features/a-finer-place-in-which-to-live-keeping-warren-h-manning-s-legacy-freshly-planted/article_19a41482-1c43-47c4-aca9-1c4111b5d244.html

Plan #1772-18, "General Plan for the Village of Pinehurst, NC", ink on draft cloth, Nov. 21, 1895

11/19/2025

PLAN O' THE WEEK: Congrats to the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy on the recently-announced anonymous donation of $5 million that will go to support the renovation of Chickasaw Park! "To ensure that this process reflects the needs and hopes of the Chickasaw area community, Olmsted Parks Conservancy has established the Chickasaw Park Restoration Community Steering Committee, composed of respected community leaders and longtime park advocates...[the] Conservancy invites the community to give input on future improvements in Chickasaw Park!"
https://www.olmstedparks.org/chickasaw-park-updates/
Plan # 1279-10, "Preliminary Plan for Chickasaw Park", ink on draft cloth, December 1923

11/14/2025

PLAN O' THE WEEK: Aaaand we're back!

Well, the federal government is, as are your humble Olmsted NHS employees. The site is closed for the season (we'll be open to visitors in the spring, budget permitting!) but you know what never closes? Access to the Archives online!

If you missed the announcement earlier this year, the Olmsted Research Guide Online (ORGO) has taken a quantum leap forward to include images in the database! (Plus some other cool new features!) See you never again, boring old text-only database! (but seriously, thanks for a good twenty years...)
www.rediscov.com/olmsted

You know what else is open again? The Olmsted NHS "Collections" page on Flickr! https://www.flickr.com/photos/olmsted_archives/collections
Due to an ongoing technical issue with the site, this one-stop-shopping site was inaccessible for a number of months, requiring users to flip through dozens of pages of albums to get to the Olmsted project you're looking for. The TRUE Department of Government Efficiency! ; )

It's good to be back serving the American public!

Plan #673-1-pt1, "Plan of F.L. Olmsted Estate, Brookline, Mass. [linear scale - 1"=10']", cyanotype negative with ink, graphite and colored pencil/crayon on paper, Apr. 9, 1904

10/01/2025

Operations in the Absence of Appropriations

09/25/2025

Have you been itchin' for a ranger-guided talk? Perhaps in the fall? Maybe on a walk? You're in luck! Join Ranger Eileen for a Fall Walk and Talk: Olmsted Park and Jamaica Pond - the Final Links in the Emerald Necklace.

📆 When? Saturday, October 11, 10AM-1PM
🗺 Where? Allerton Overlook, Olmsted Park (203 Pond Ave., Brookline, MA 02445)
🧐 What's this all about? Join Ranger Eileen on a walk through both Olmsted Park and Jamaica Pond and discuss both the history of, and landscape design principles deployed in, the creation of these two adjacent parks.
💥Note: The walk will be approximately 2.5 to 3 miles and will last for approximately 2-2.5 hours. There will be stopping at various points of interest to talk, on and off pavement, and then walking at a moderate pace in between, so please dress in layers to ensure you maintain a comfortable temperature throughout and wear appropriate shoes.

✍️ Ready to RSVP? https://www.eventbrite.com/e/olmsted-park-and-jamaica-pond-the-final-links-in-the-emerald-necklace-tickets-1743596868169?aff=oddtdtcreator

Any questions? Contact Katie Lade, [email protected], for additional information.

Address

99 Warren Street
Brookline, MA
02445

Telephone

+16175661689

Website

http://www.nps.gov/frla

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