Object Details
- Reproduction Note
- Two slides copied from Washington State Historical Society collections, Tacoma, Washington; four from Mrs. Corydon Wagner collection; two from Treasury of American Gardens; one from The American Woman's Garden; and three from unknown sources. One photoprint is copy of original 1928 photoprint.
- General
- According to Mrs. Corydon (Eulalie) Wagner, the one acre, European-style garden, was seen at its best when seen from above. A city garden enclosed by high cement walls, it consisted of formal pathways of white pebbles; eight flower beds outlined with dwarf box; and a round pool surrounded by a square qrass bed and parterres. The beds displayed various color schemes of tulips, followed by a "Mille Fleur" perennial garden in the summer. Tea roses were added during the 1920s. After the death of Mrs. Merrill in the 1930s, the family opened the house for charitable organizations, particularly those in which she took an active part. During World War II, Victory Garden vegetables filled in where lilies and holly-hocks grew. The perennial borders were slightly transformed by using annuals, and after the bay trees died in the wooden boxes, they were replaced with tree-tiered topiaries of Ficus. During the 1960s, the Merrill family visited Versailles and its box borders. In order to eliminate the upkeep of the "Mille Fleur" summer garden, Thomas Church designed a box parterre, a miniature version of those at Villandry--eliminating much of Shipman's perennial borders. Kevin Harvey currently plants strongly-shaped and colored perennials into the gravel beds to add year-round interest.
- Persons associated with the garden include: Richard Dwight Merrill (former owner, 1910-1964); Eulalie Wagner (former owner, ?-1991); The Merrill Foundation (owners of 1/2 the original property); Charles A. Platt (architect, landscape designer, 1910); Ellen Biddle Shipman (landscape architect, 1915); Thomas Dolliver Church (landscape architect, 1960s); and Kevin Harvey (gardener and designer, 2004).
- Landscape designer
- Platt, Charles A. (Charles Adams), 1861-1933
- Architect
- Platt, Charles A. (Charles Adams), 1861-1933
- Landscape architect
- Church, Thomas Dolliver
- Shipman, Ellen Biddle, 1869-1950
- Collection Creator
- Garden Club of America
- Place
- The Merrill House (Seattle, Washington)
- United States of America -- Washington -- King County -- Seattle
- Topic
- Gardens -- Washington (State) -- Seattle
- Landscape designer
- Platt, Charles A. (Charles Adams), 1861-1933
- Architect
- Platt, Charles A. (Charles Adams), 1861-1933
- Landscape architect
- Church, Thomas Dolliver
- Shipman, Ellen Biddle, 1869-1950
- See more items in
- The Garden Club of America collection
- The Garden Club of America collection / Series 1: United States Gardens / Washington
- 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.
- Archival Repository
- Archives of American Gardens
- Identifier
- AAG.GCA, File WA012
- Type
- Archival materials
- Collection Citation
- Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
- 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.
- Bibliography
- Garden featured in Louise shelton, Beautiful Gardens in America (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1915). Garden featured in James M. Fitch and F. F. Rockwell, Treasury of American Gardens (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1956), pp. 100-101. Garden featured in Rosemary Verey and Ellen Samuels, The American Woman's Garden (Boston: Little, Brown & Company), pp. 15-16. Garden featured in Valerie Easton, "Designer Original," in Pacific Northwest, The Seattle Times Magazine, 11 July 2004, pp. 34
- Scope and Contents
- The folders include work sheets, narrative history by Mrs. Corydon (Eulalie) Wagner and copies of articles.
- 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.
- Record ID
- ebl-1643208220039-1643210188632-0
