Longwood Gardens
Encyclopedia
Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
Kennett Square is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is known as the Mushroom Capital of the World because mushroom farming in the region produces over a million pounds of mushrooms a year...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the Brandywine Creek Valley. It is one of the premier botanical garden
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
s in the United States and is open to visitors year-round to enjoy exotic plants and horticulture (both indoor and outdoor), events and performances, seasonal and themed attractions, as well as take part in educational lectures, courses and workshops.
Early history
What is now Longwood Gardens was originally purchased from William PennWilliam Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...
in 1700 by a fellow Quaker named George Peirce (1646–1734). Although it started as a working farm, in 1798 twin brothers Joshua and Samuel Peirce planted the first specimens of an arboretum
Arboretum
An arboretum in a narrow sense is a collection of trees only. Related collections include a fruticetum , and a viticetum, a collection of vines. More commonly, today, an arboretum is a botanical garden containing living collections of woody plants intended at least partly for scientific study...
, originally named Peirce’s Park, and has been open to the public almost continuously since that time. By 1850 they had amassed one of the finest collections of trees in the nation.
Industrialist Pierre S. du Pont (1870–1954) purchased the property from the Peirce family in 1906 to save the arboretum from being sold for lumber. He made it his private estate, and from 1906 until the 1930s, du Pont added extensively to the property. A world traveler from an early age, du Pont was often inspired to add features to the garden after attending world's fairs, the most notable additions being the massive conservatory, complete with a massive pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
, and the extensive system of fountain
Fountain
A fountain is a piece of architecture which pours water into a basin or jets it into the air either to supply drinking water or for decorative or dramatic effect....
s. Mr. Du Pont opened his estate to the public many days of the year during his occupancy and was even known, on a rare occasion, to personally (and anonymously) provide tours to visitors as happened one day with a lady requiring a wheelchair, as reported by Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
publisher, Bennett Cerf
Bennett Cerf
Bennett Alfred Cerf was a publisher and co-founder of Random House. Cerf was also known for his own compilations of jokes and puns, for regular personal appearances lecturing across the United States, and for his television appearances in the panel game show What's My Line?.-Biography:Bennett Cerf...
.
Following the completion of the fountains, du Pont began planning for the sustained life of Longwood Gardens after his death. According to his will, filed in Delaware and dated March 21, 1946, he founded Longwood Foundation Inc. and left most of his estate "for the maintenance and improvement of the gardens." Upon du Pont’s unexpected death April 5, 1954, Henry B. du Pont, president of the Longwood Foundation, announced, "There will be no change in our long-standing policy of opening the gardens and greenhouse to the public every day in the week."
Organ
The resident Longwood Organ is a 10,010 pipe instrument designed by Longwood organist-in-residence Firmin SwinnenFirmin Swinnen
Firmin Swinnen was a Belgian theater organist who was noted for his organ improvisations during silent films in New York City.-Career:...
, a Belgian musician who moved to the US in 1916 and became a prominent theater organist in New York City. The organ's pipes filled fourteen railway freight cars, and they needed a 72 hp blower motor to supply the wind pressure; the instrument was one of the largest pipe organs installed in a private residence. Pierre du Pont ordered a massive Aeolian
Aeolian Company
The Æolian Company was a manufacturer of player organs and pianos.- History :It was founded by New York City piano maker William B. Tremaine as the Æolian Organ & Music Co. to make automatic organs, and, after 1895, as the Æolian Co. automatic pianos as well. The Æolian Company was a...
organ in 1929 to replace the previous organ of 3,650 pipes, which he donated to the University of Delaware where it stayed until 1964.
The four-manual organ plays into the Longwood ballroom and can be heard throughout the conservatory when adjoining window panels are opened. Its pipes may be viewed from the rear through glass panels in Longwood's organ museum. The Longwood Organ has recently undergone a restoration that began in 2004 and was completed in January 2011.
Longwood today
Today the 1,077-plus acre Longwood Gardens consists of 20 outdoor gardens and 20 indoor gardens within 4.5 acres (18,200 m²) of heated greenhouses, known as conservatories. It contains 11,000 different types of plants and trees, as well as fountains. The Gardens also has extensive educational programs including a tuition-free two-year school of professional horticulture, a graduate program, and extensive internships. It hosts 800 horticultural and performing arts events each year, from flower shows, gardening demonstrations, courses, and children's programs to concerts, organ and carillon recitals, musical theatre, fountain shows, and fireworks displays. It also hosts an extensive Christmas light display during the holiday season.Longwood's conservatory is one of the world's greatest greenhouse structures. The conservatory alone is home to 5,500 types of plants. An exploration of the 20 indoor gardens spanning a half mile takes about an hour and a half. Gardens of the conservatory, each with its own exquisite displays of plants, include The Orangery, Silver Garden, Acacia Passage, Orchid House, Cascade Garden, Palm House, Mediterranean Garden, Tropical Terrace and the Outdoor Water Garden display. Since its original construction date in 1919, it has undergone expansions and renovations. In January 2003, the East Conservatory was closed for a renovation project, with the main hall reopening to the public on October 29, 2005.
The gardens attracted nearly 900,000 visitors during 2009 and plans for the growth and expansion of Longwood Gardens for the next four decades began in 2010 with the hiring of West 8
West 8
West 8 is an urban planning and landscape architecture firm founded by Adrian Geuze in the Netherlands. It is known for its contemporary designs and innovative solutions to urban planning problems using lighting, metal structures, and color....
, a Dutch landscape architecture
Landscape architecture
Landscape architecture is the design of outdoor and public spaces to achieve environmental, socio-behavioral, or aesthetic outcomes. It involves the systematic investigation of existing social, ecological, and geological conditions and processes in the landscape, and the design of interventions...
and urban planning
Urban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
firm with headquarters in Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
and an office in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The founder of West 8, Adriaan Geuze, stated their mission is: “to celebrate Longwood, enjoy it, keep it, preserve it, while asking how could it function as a spectacular place for larger groups of people in the 21st century." The comprehensive Longwood plan is expected to be complete by July 2011.
See also
- List of botanical gardens in the United States
- List of museums in Pennsylvania
- Cannas at Longwood GardensRobert Armstrong (geneticist)Dr. Robert Armstrong, Longwood Gardens newly appointed Geneticist, began a canna breeding program in 1967, when it was realized that cultivars available at that time were not suitable for use on display in the Gardens conservatories and lakes.-Goals:...
- Winterthur MuseumHenry Francis DuPont Winterthur MuseumWinterthur Museum and Country Estate is an American estate and museum in Winterthur, Delaware. it houses one of the most important collections of Americana in the United States of America. It was the former home of Henry Francis du Pont , a renowned antiques collector and horticulturist...
- Nemours Mansion and GardensNemours Mansion and GardensThe Nemours Mansion and Gardens is a country estate with jardin à la française formal gardens and a classical French mansion located in Wilmington, Delaware. The mansion resembles a Château and contains more than seventy rooms spread over five floors occupying nearly . It shares the grounds with...
- Hagley Museum and LibraryHagley Museum and LibraryThe Hagley Museum and Library is a nonprofit educational institution located in Wilmington, Delaware. Hagley Museum and Library collects, preserves and interprets the history of American enterprise.- Hagley Library :...
External links
- Longwood Gardens website
- Longwood Rotary Club
- Flowers in Longwood Gardens
- Longwood Gardens - History Overview
- Longwood Gardens - Organ (Site defunct prior to 11/2010)
- Brandywine 10
- DuPont Heritage
- Chateau Country
- Karp, WalterWalter KarpWalter Karp was an American journalist, historian, and writer published in magazines such as American Heritage and Horizon, and also was a contributing editor for Harper's magazine , which re-published some of his political history books in 2003...
, "The Powder Maker’s Garden", American HeritageAmerican Heritage (magazine)American Heritage is a quarterly magazine dedicated to covering the history of the United States for a mainstream readership. Until 2007, the magazine was published by Forbes. Since that time, Edwin S...
, April 1990