FROM THE GROUND UP

COURTESY OF HOTEL DEL CORONADO

The freshly landscaped Hotel del Coronado courtyard opened to the public in February 1888. Frederick Koeppen was placed in charge of The Del's landscaping.

Forgotten gardeners

Kate Sessions only played small role in cultivation of Hotel Del grounds

By GINA PETRONE

It has been widely believed that renowned horticulturalist Kate Sessions was responsible for designing the gardens in and around Hotel del Coronado. However, a review of hotel co-founder Elisha Babcock’s business correspondence and newspaper stories reveal two often-overlooked contributors — Edgar Sharpe and Frederick Koeppen — and show that Sessions’ involvement was sporadic.

Before Babcock and Hampton Story formed the Coronado Beach Co. in April 1886, they hired John Orcutt, whose family operated a nursery in San Diego, to supervise tree planting on Coronado. By

March 1886, orange trees, camphor, tea and coconut trees had all been ordered.

In September of that year, the Coronado Beach Co. entered into a contract with “Mr. and Mrs. S.G. Blaisdell and Miss Kate Sessions of Oakland” to establish a nursery on Coronado, which opened about a month later.

Nurseries started to spring up all over San Diego, and exotic plants were all the rage. The Coronado Beach Co. purchased 200 varieties of cactuses from Orcutt and arranged with industrialist John D. Spreckels to secure royal palms. The company established its own nursery in August 1887 while The Del was under construction, and the partnership with the Blaisdells and Sessions dissolved by year-end.

Edgar Sharpe, Babcock’s cousin from

COURTESY OF HOTEL DEL CORONADO

Hotel del Coronado's nursery became known as a botanical garden filled with exotic plants. This photo was taken in the 1890s.

Evansville, Illinois, was placed in charge of the company’s nursery on Coronado. An article in the San Francisco-based Pacific Rural Press in November 1889 said: “The establishment is under the management of Edgar Sharpe. He was not a professional florist or gardener, but his fondness for forestry had caused him to acquire a vast amount of information in his globe travels, and how well he has utilized it, the rarely beautiful grounds of Hotel del Coronado, the parks and growing avenues, testify.”

The article says Sharpe was turning the nursery into a botanical garden, having “turned principally to Japan, the Canary Islands, Cape of Good Hope, and Australia for seeds,” with many varieties of palms, acacia trees, eucalyptus and pines. By May 1890, Babcock had a created a Botanical Gardens trolley stop at 3rd Street.

While Sharpe controlled the nursery, Frederick Koeppen, who came to Coronado in 1886, was The Del’s first landscape gardener. Babcock directed him to plant blue morning glory in the court patio and marguerite daisies all around the hotel in May 1890. Babcock was so fond of marguerites, he later recommended changing the name of Orange Avenue to Marguerite Avenue.

After Coronado incorporated in December 1890, the city took over management of its trees and parks. Babcock reached out to Sessions at that time and offered her the role of a commission agent to sell Coronado Beach Co. plants. Sessions also received part of a pavilion to open the Spring House flower stand in exchange for 50 percent of the proceeds. The flower

COURTESY OF HOTEL DEL CORONADO

A photo of the Coronado nursery, taken between March 1892 and February 1900.

stand, across from the hotel, opened in January 1891.

By the end of 1891, Sharpe left San Diego for Monterey County and Koeppen was placed in charge of the nursery, which had become known as the Coronado Botanical Garden.

“The late manager, Mr. Sharpe, brought these grounds from the condition of wilderness to one of the most beautiful garden spots and his successor, Mr. Koeppen, is a thoroughly practical gardener. This gentleman takes unusual delight in his profession and is untiring in his efforts to keep not only the botanical gardens but the court of the hotel in the highest state of perfection,” according to a story in the San Diego Union and Daily Bee on Dec. 3, 1891.

Babcock ended his contract with Sessions in April 1892 and took over the management of the flower stand himself until 1899, when he asked her to take over again. He then separated the botanical garden from the hotel and retained Koeppen at the hotel grounds, who stayed until 1904. By then, the hotel was owned by Spreckels and Babcock was the manager.

“Miss Kate Sessions will take charge of what is grown at the nursery, make purchases, attend to the decorating of the hotel and manage the flower stand. She will be paid $30 per month,” Babcock wrote in August 1899. Sessions did not operate the flower stand herself, but she planted the cactus garden near the hotel’s Spring House in 1900.

In a letter to Sessions in June 1901, Babcock wrote: “Our statements show that for the two years the gardens have been under your control, we have been selling less each year than we did before.” Babcock offered to lease her the hotel flower stand on a percentage basis, but Sessions negotiated to take charge of the botanical gardens, golf grounds, cactus garden and Tent City although there is no mention of her regarding any operation at the hotel after 1901.

Sessions went on to bigger things, especially shaping the landscape of Balboa Park. While her place as “the dean of California horticulturalists” is well established, her connection to Hotel del Coronado appears to be limited.

The main work of The Del’s grounds fell to Sharpe and Koeppen, the forgotten gardeners. ■

Gina Petrone is Heritage Manager at Hotel del Coronado.