40 YEARS 1980-2020
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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
December 1, 2020
From the President Dear NAOP Friends – In 2022, when we celebrate the Bicentennial of Olmsted’s birth, Olmsted 200, we will look back and remember the role Olmsted parks and landscapes played in helping us survive during this extraordinary year. We are grateful to our park leaders and friends who, in the face of a global pandemic, have shown grace under pressure. And we are even more grateful for those visionaries over 40 years ago who understood the importance of preserving and protecting Olmsted’s historic parks and landscapes and founded the National Association for Olmsted Parks. This has been a remarkable year for NAOP. We have celebrated our 40th anniversary and have welcomed the last and 12th volume of the Olmsted Papers. We have seen our Olmsted Network serving on the front lines -- in Buffalo, Brooklyn, New York, Boston, Rochester, DC, and Atlanta – to make sure that Olmsted’s parks continue to offer solace and safe spaces. We have watched our membership and resources grow and have stepped up our vital advocacy. In so many ways, this anniversary year has underscored the urgent need for NAOP. We remain the only national organization dedicated to advancing the life, work and legacy of Olmsted and the Olmsted firm. More than ever before, Olmsted’s legacy is important: • • • • •
Beautiful and resilient designs Access to parks, open space and civic space for all communities Physical and mental health benefits of nature The opportunity to unite and build community through the built environment And the need and importance of committed stewardship
I want to thank you for your continuing support. When this crisis is over, we will be stronger – not only because of the existence of Olmsted Parks -- but because of the web of support and connections that we have together. Olmsted 200 – a national year-long celebration of Olmsted’s life and legacy – is on the horizon. We will have much to celebrate. Warm regards,
President and CEO
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
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A Look Back: A Look Forward FOCUS ON OUR FOUNDING At a meeting in Buffalo 40 years ago, Charlie McLaughlin threw down the gauntlet, asking this question. “Olmsted’s Parks—Antiques or Urban Necessities?” And so NAOP began. The National Association for Olmsted Parks answered McLaughlin’s question with a thundering response: Olmsted parks ARE “urban necessities.” Founded in 1980 in Buffalo by Joan Bozer and others, the National Association for Olmsted Parks became the first and only national organization focused solely on parks and places designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and the Olmsted firm. Incorporated in New York, and doing business in Washington, DC, NAOP has been devoted ever since to the protection, preservation and restoration of Olmsted parks and landscapes of every kind. Since 1980, NAOP has successfully secured the important legacy of Frederick Law Olmsted, shaping how the public views and preserves Olmsted landscapes. It has relied on the active participation of its Board of Trustees to help harness and direct community engagement and build partnerships that leverage national and federal attention and funding. Over the last four decades, NAOP has helped foster the emergence of park conservancies, friends’ groups and citizen volunteers to preserve their neighborhood parks. It has created a permanent scholarly record, overseeing the research and publication of the Papers of Frederick Law Olmsted. It has produced an array of lively publications including reprints of key Olmsted papers, regular Field Notes and workbooks, and promoted educational outreach through frequent conference. Over many years, NAOP has also engaged in rapid-response advocacy across the country. NAOP’s thoughtful campaigns convinced the US Post Office in 1999 to produce an Olmsted stamp and the National Park Service to establish Fairsted as the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site. 4
As we celebrate our 40th anniversary, we include in this Annual Report, just a few highlights of the last 40 years.
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
NAOP Through the Years 1980s
1990s
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Founding of the National Association for Olmsted Parks by resolution at a meeting of parks advocates in Buffalo, NY (1980)
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Founding of Buffalo, Seattle, Atlanta, Fort Tryon, Maryland, New York State, Prospect Park and Louisville Friends Groups
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NAOP Testimony at Congressional hearing on National Inventory of Olmsted Parks (“Olmsted Historic Landscapes Act”)
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First national conference in Boston, Brookline and Cambridge and continuing annual conferences around the country
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Publication of “The Master List of Design Projects of The Olmsted Firm, 1857–1950” (also known as the “Green Book”) in conjunction with the Massachusetts Association for Olmsted Parks
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Cooperative Agreement with the National Park Service Historic Landscape Initiative (1995)
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Tour of Yosemite National Park, “Centennial Celebration for Yosemite,” in conjunction with the National Park Service •
U.S. Postal Service issues Frederick Law Olmsted stamp, introduced at the American Society of Landscape Architects annual meeting in Boston, the 100th anniversary of the professional organization Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., helped found.
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Founding of Maine Olmsted Alliance; Montauk, NY Friends of Olmsted Parks; Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy
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Publication of NAOP workbooks (including “Landscape Composition Preservation Treatment: Defining an Ethic for Designed Landscapes,” by Charles A. Birnbaum, ASLA and “Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr.,” by Susan L. Klaus) & sponsorship of conferences around the country
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NAOP is awarded the American Society of Landscape Architects Medal of Excellence (June 2008)
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“Maintaining Historic Urban Parks” Workshop in Washington, D.C. sponsored by the Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation in cooperation with NAOP and the National Park Service; research begun on Olmsted listings on the National Historic Register
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“The Second edition of The Master List of Design Projects of the Olmsted Firm 1857–1979” is released, receiving numerous awards.
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NAOP Greensward Plan Celebration Dinner at the Century Association
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Parks & the Health of Great Cities, International Urban Parks Conference in Pittsburgh, PA, September 21–23, cosponsored by NAOP, City Parks Alliance and the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy
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NAOP receives a major grant from the state of Washington for GIS-based mapping of Olmsted work in Washington (December 2010)
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Premiere of The Olmsted Legacy: America’s Urban Parks (PBS) (2011); Premiere of Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing America (PBS) (2014)
2000s
2010s
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Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. Symposium – Washington, DC & Palo Alto; Olmsted Symposia in Hartford and Louisville
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NAOP convenes meetings in Boston, Washington and Brookline to gather ideas and develop support for Olmsted 200
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NAOP hosts Good Neighbors Institute with the FLO National Historic Site
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
2020s
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NAOP hires first President and CEO
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NAOP serves as managing partner of Olmsted 200, the national bicentennial celebration of Olmsted’s birth
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Final Volume, SS3, is published of the Frederick Law Olmsted Papers, topping off the remarkable career of chief editor Charles Beveridge
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NAOP launches Olmsted Network Open Exchange
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NAOP initiates online lectures about Olmsted and Olmsted legacy
NAOP BOARD CHAIRMEN, THROUGH THE YEARS NAOP has been the beneficiary of many dedicated leaders and volunteers through the years. We are happy to note our Chairs and Co-chairs – with our sincere thanks. Betsy Shure Gross, Charles McLaughlin, Gail Travis Guillet, Donald Harris, Ann Satterthwaite, Tupper Thomas, Dana White, Sanford Parisky, Clyde Eller, Eleanor Ames, Nicholas Quennell, Marion Pressley, Newton Levee, Caroline K. Loughlin, Charles Birnbaum, Arleyn Levee, Faye Harwell, Mary Fox, Morton J. Baum, Lucy Lawliss, Susan West Montgomery, David Bahlman, Ethan Carr, William Hawkins, Christopher Bayley, Sarah Earley, Patrice Kish, Barbara Yaeger, Philip Schultz
Olmsted Stewardship Award The Olmsted Stewardship Award recognizes an individual for outstanding stewardship of the living legacy of landscapes designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and by his sons, associates, and successor firms. Individuals nominated have shown a sustained commitment, and a record of accomplishment in researching, managing, preserving, and interpreting Olmsted landscapes for future generations. In 2020, the NAOP board was honored to award the prize to David Schuyler posthumously. Schuyler was a generous scholar and advisor to NAOP over many decades. He died unexpectedly on July 2020. He was the co-editor of four volumes of The Papers of Frederick Law Olmsted and a beloved professor of Humanities and American Studies at Franklin & Marshall College for forty years. His classes regularly attracted a passionate group of students who, inspired by David, have since gone on to their own influential careers. In addition to being a dedicated teacher, David was the author of numerous books on historical
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
and environmental topics including Embattled River: The Hudson and Modern American Environmentalism; Sanctified Landscape: Writers, Artists and the Hudson River Valley, 1820-1909; and Apostle of Taste: Andrew Jackson Downing, 1815-1852. Many of these titles, and accompanying preservation efforts, reflected his devotion to the scenic environment around Newburgh, NY where he grew up.
Past winners include:
2016 2017 2019 2020
Marion Pressley Jean McKee Olmsted Parks Conservancy (Louisville) David Schuyler (posthumously)
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Caroline Loughlin Volunteer Service Award Caroline Loughlin was a valued trustee, officer and long-time supporter of NAOP. After she joined the board in 1989, she enthusiastically participated in many activities that carried on the Olmsted legacy. She was noteworthy for the passion, intelligence, perseverance, and generosity she brought to this work. Her husband, Phil, and the Caroline Loughlin Fund continue to advance the work of NAOP in extraordinary ways. In gratitude for Caroline’s many contributions, in 2005 the NAOP board established the Caroline Loughlin Volunteer Service Award “in recognition of extraordinary dedication and commitment,” and presented the first award to Caroline. Since then, the award has been given to selected individuals who volunteer to promote and protect the Olmsted legacy in that same spirit. We are pleased to acknowledge this year’s winner, Gerry Wright, Mr. Olmsted himself:
2005 2007 2008 2009 2009 2013 2017 2018 2018 2019 2020
Caroline Loughlin Charles Beveridge Jerry Baum Jim Rollins Lauren Meier Anne Knight Piera Weiss Newton Levee Lauren Meier Susan Frey Rademacher Gerry Wright
Olmsted Legacy Award This award recognizes excellence in preserving and promoting the living legacy of landscapes designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, his sons, associates, and successor firms. The award recognizes individuals, organizations, agencies, or programs for leadership, vision, and stewardship of specific landscapes.
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2012 2016
Jeremy and Margaret Jacobs (Deeridge North Estate, East Aurora, NY) Mimi Batchelder-Brown (Moraine Farm, Beverly, MA)
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
2020 Year in Review In addition to marking NAOP’s 40th birthday, 2020 has proven a groundbreaking year in so many ways. NAOP has attracted new friends, hired a new President and CEO and started preparation for the bicentennial of Olmsted’s birth in 2022. The highlights of the year are outlined below:
Fostering of Conservancies and Friends Groups. Over the last four decades, NAOP has helped create, foster and educate park conservancies, friends’ groups and citizen volunteers. In 2020, NAOP continued this education and outreach. As we enter our next decade, NAOP remains uniquely positioned to advance this work as the only national umbrella organization. And Olmsted 200 – the bicentennial celebration of the birth of Frederick Law Olmsted – offers an unmatched opportunity to highlight the urgent work of Olmsted parks and friends groups across the country.
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Planning Ahead With that in mind, NAOP started planning for Olmsted 200 in 2018 under the leadership of thenNAOP board chairman Lucy Lawliss and board member Arleyn Levee. During that year, NAOP invited a wide array of interested parties to share ideas and brainstorm about what Olmsted 200 could be.
president of the Trust for the National Mall, to work with the group to develop a national plan, building on the great thinking and inspiring ideas collected in 2018 and 2019. In December 2019, the core group of planning partners met and approved a provisional budget of $1.6 million for Olmsted 200.
Using those ideas, a group of core planning partners –NAOP, the American Society of Landscape Architects, City Parks Alliance, The Cultural Landscape Foundation, The Garden Club of America, and the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site -- continued to meet and discuss this opportunity.
Since that time, four additional outstanding groups have joined the planning partners: National Recreation and Park Association, The Trust for Public Land, the Landscape Architecture Foundation and the American Public Health Association.
In mid 2019, NAOP commissioned Caroline Cunningham, a respected consultant and former
Olmsted 200 is forging head!
What is planned for Olmsted 200? In keeping with NAOP’s long-time focus, Olmsted 200 offers public education, advocacy, and outreach about Olmsted and the Olmsted firm. There will be a coordinated array of national and local programming including:.
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OLMSTED 200 WEBSITE -
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OLMSTED 200 TOOLKITS – with
Comprehensive searchable calendar of all national and local events and activities; map of all Olmsted projects -- FIND YOUR OLMSTED PARK; explorations of Olmsted Parks and other Olmsted landscapes around the country; #Olmsted 200 hashtag focus on Instagram and Twitter.
sharable graphics and logos for all events; ideas for community-based activities, including a Model Olmsted Day Proclamation and suggestions for local recreational, educational and advocacy activities.
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
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KICK OFF - Spring 2021 – one
year before the actual birthday, launching the national website and showcasing Olmsted’s work across the country.
Through these tools, Olmsted 200 seeks to foster:
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LOCAL ACTIVITIES in parks
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NATIONAL CONFERENCES (BY THE PARTICIPATING PARTNERS AND OTHERS)
Renewed appreciation of Frederick Law Olmsted’s contribution to American life, culture, and landscape, with an emphasis not only on the physical manifestations of his values and principles, but on the principles themselves.
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Renewed and enhanced appreciation by the American people of the value to their lives of parks, open space, and civic space.
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Stimulation of a national conversation, via local place-based events, about the need for access to parks, recreation, and open space in all American communities .
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Commitment to the sustained and equitable maintenance and development of parks and landscapes to preserve them for future generations.
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Understanding of the importance of inclusive and system-wide landscape design and planning to address ecological, social, cultural, equity and inclusion issues.
and places around the country throughout 2022.
on the application of Olmsted values and principles to our times.
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MAJOR MEDIA/PR OUTREACH
In 2020, Olmsted 200 made considerable progress towards these goals, developing a logo and branding kit; and creating both a master communications plan and messaging framework for the campaign. In early 2021, Olmsted 200 will launch its national website and provide toolkits dedicated to advocacy, social media and communications to assist efforts at the local level.
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Communicating To advance the Olmsted legacy, regular and inspiring communication is important. Today, NAOP reaches out to more than 3000 friends across the country. In order to keep our network current, we publish an online Bulletin to offer up-to-date information on NAOP activities and pressing issues facing parks and public spaces. Starting in May, NAOP instituted twice monthly E-Blasts (the 1st and 15th) to provide more regular communications. Each Bulletin provides short offerings and items of appeal. In this way, we reach out with timely news affecting our parks and public spaces. Plans are underway to upgrade the NAOP website and communications platforms as resources become available.
NAOP SOCIAL MEDIA. NAOP has social media
accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and regularly shares articles that have mentioned Olmsted and Olmsted parks around the country.
You can follow NAOP on Instagram and Twitter: Olmsted_Legacy and @OlmstedSpaces You can follow NAOP on Instagram and Twitter: Olmsted_Legacy @OlmstedSpaces
FIELD NOTES. On a semi-annual basis, we also published Field Notes, an in-depth newsletter created by Olmsted friends around the country to tell of inspiring activities at the local level. This publication comes out in the spring and fall and consists of diverse and lively reports on steps organizations are taking to restore, improve and protect Olmsted parks and places around the country.
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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
Olmsted Network The Olmsted Network is a key group of partners around the country who steward Olmsted parks and conservancies. We are proud to highlight them on the NAOP website. In 2020 we redoubled our efforts to grow the network as we prepare for the bicentennial. In recent months, assisted by two volunteers – one a retired federal worker and the other a former professor – we have been vigorously building our contacts in the academic community. We have had enthusiastic responses from colleges and secondary schools whose campuses were designed by the Olmsteds.
ONLINE EXCHANGE. To bring the Olmsted Network together regularly, in 2020, we also started a new monthly offering called Open Exchange. Through the power of Zoom, we bring the heads of Olmsted Parks around the country to share experiences, ask questions and talk about best practices. During the pandemic, this virtual experience has been invigorating and helpful as park leaders faced new and unexpected challenges.OlmstedSpaces
Thank you. It was eye-opening for me, as president of a conservancy of a small 54 acre park in the NY metropolitan area. I was surprised that some parks are open to walkers and actually are experiencing above average use. …Thank you for the opportunity to join in on the Zoom meeting today. - CHARLES HEYER, PRESIDENT, VERONA PARK CONSERVANCY
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
The more communication the better and we all seem to be adapting quite well to all the new technology. I will make time available for any and all gatherings. I really appreciate your role and bringing us all together. -STEPHANIE CROCKATT, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, BUFFALO OLMSTED PARKS CONSERVANCY
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Research, Outreach and Publications From the beginning, NAOP has been dedicated to developing a permanent scholarly record of the work of Frederick Law Olmsted and the Olmsted Firm.
The Frederick Law Olmsted Papers Project has been a labor of love for nearly 40 years, starting with editor Charles McLaughlin and concluding with Series editor Dr. Charles Beveridge.
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In October, Johns Hopkins University Press issued the 12th and final volume of the Papers -Supplementary Edition Volume 3, Frederick Law Olmsted: Plans and Views of Communities and Private Estates.
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
NAOP is currently negotiating with the University of Virginia to have digital versions of the Papers of Frederick Law Olmsted available to scholars and the broader public by 2022. As we approach the culmination of this remarkable project, we offer our profound thanks to editors through the years: Charles Capen McLaughlin Charles Eliot Beveridge Ethan Carr Jane Turner Censer Amanda Gagel Kenneth Hawkins Carolyn F. Hoffman Tina Hummel Gregory Kaliss Lauren Meier Irene Mills Victoria Post Ranney Gerard J. Rauluk Jeffrey Schlossberg Michael Shapiro David Schuyler
Honoring Charles Beveridge •
Founders Award with Charles C. McLaughlin, American Civil War Museum (1981)
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National Medal for Historic Preservation, The Garden Club of America (2000)
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Olmsted Medal, American Society of Landscape Architecture and Honorary Membership (2005)
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Stewardship Excellence Award, The Cultural Landscape Foundation (2008)
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Preservation Hero Award, Library of American Landscape History (2015)
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Lifetime Achievement Award, Landscape Architecture Foundation (2015)
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Charles E. Beveridge Research Fellowship, Friends of Fairsted (2012)
The Master List of Olmsted Firm Design Projects (1857-1979). The Master List, second edition, continues to serve as the bible for Olmsted scholars and those interested in researching the vast work of the Olmsted firm – nearly 6000 projects in all. Created in partnership with the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site, the Master List provides concise and informative summaries of the diverse work undertaken by FLO and Olmsted firm for over 100 years. It played a prominent role in the creation and release in 2020 of a new cultural landscape report about Fairsted/ Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site. Editors Lucy Lawliss, Caroline Loughlin and Lauren Meier were responsible for this extraordinary publication. The book received numerous accolades after its release in 2008.
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Olmsted Online Supplementing the Master List is Olmsted Online, a unique online aggregation of information about the many Olmsted firm projects, overseen by former NAOP board member Anne Knight. Olmsted Online provides access to diverse data and documents about the thousands of Olmsted firm design and planning projects around the world. This geo-referenced information, both historical and contemporary, provides information in the form of original plans, photographs, reports, and correspondence, designed to enable advocates, stewards, landscape and planning professionals, scholars and the casual visitor alike to better understand, support, protect and manage Olmsted-designed landscapes within their communities or within their areas of interest. Over the last year, Olmsted Online added an array of new resources including research on Olmsted properties by The Cultural Landscape Foundation, as well as correspondence recently digitized by the Library of Congress. In some cases, Olmsted Online added contemporary images of project areas.
Digitizing the Olmsted Records housed at Fairsted Important Olmsted primary source materials are housed at Fairsted and the Library of Congress. Public Law 86-97 (1979) authorized the purchase of Olmsted’s home and office in Brookline, Massachusetts, as well as the archival collection at the site – containing more than 1,000,000 documents. As it has done for many years, NAOP continued in 2019-2020 its critical partnership with Fairsted to assist in the digitization of the Olmsted records and make these voluminous resources available to the public. These records consist of plans, drawings, and photographs which document the work of the Olmsted firm over 100 years. With NAOP’s support, the archivist at Fairsted scans documents that will be added to the Olmsted Flickr Photo Album website.
completed by December 2020. More than fifty percent of the images have been scanned in the last five years. The resulting scans will dramatically increase the ability of the public to access this national resource, while decreasing the need continuously to handle fragile historic documents, thus preserving them unimpaired. This project seeks to provide clear examples of “best practices” for future digitization.
18,000 50%+ IMAGES ADDED DURING 20172020
IMAGES SCANNED IN THE LAST 5 YEARS
NAOP’s ongoing effort has added 5,000 images in 2017, 6,000 in 2018 and 7000 projected to be
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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
Conferences and Educational Programming In addition to providing access to key records, NAOP has regularly spearheaded conferences and educational programs on Olmsted parks and Olmsted issues around the country. In April, it was co-sponsor of a seminar – The Olmsted Legacy in Essex County: Honoring the Past; Treasuring the Present; Shaping the Future. This, regrettably, was cancelled because of the pandemic. NAOP plans to continue regular conferences (virtual and real) as part of its educational outreach. In September, Chicago historian Julia Bachrach provided a virtual lecture on the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition and Olmsted biographer Justin Martin offered an informative look at Olmsted as the “accidental Renaissance man.”
Library of Congress Correspondence Over many years, NAOP has supported the Library of Congress Manuscript Division as it works diligently to bring the Olmsted and Olmsted firm correspondence online. The Olmsted Papers have been fully digitized and the Library is now on track to have the full Olmsted Associates collection online by 2022. Both Letterbooks, 1884-1899, and Job Files, 18631971 of Olmsted Associates are now currently available through the Web. In celebration of the Olmsted bicentennial, the Library will sponsor a crowdsourcing transcription project to promote the collection as a primary source for schools and classrooms.
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Preserving and Protecting Olmsted’s Landscapes through Advocacy Over many years, NAOP has weighed in on the side of local friends groups and others seeking to save historic landscapes. Because of its advocacy, numerous parks and places have been saved from misguided development plans. In the last six months, NAOP has raised it profile significantly on the advocacy front -- taking five public positions: 1) opposing development in South Mountain Reservation, Essex County Park System; 2) opposing proposed changes to the National Environmental Policy Act; 3) calling for dedicated bike and pedestrian paths as part of the Arborway Improvement Project in Boston; 4) serving as a Section 106 consulting party, objecting to proposed development in Jackson Park; and 5) supporting Scarboro Heritage Conservation Status, Scarboro, Canada.
FROM NAOP COMMENTS -- JACKSON PARK
Tosomock Farm, Staten Island
NAOP and the Olmsted 200 coalition submitted a letter supporting the state and national register listing of: 1) the Frederick Law Olmsted Sr. Farmhouse on Staten Island. In September, the State of New York announced that the Farmhouse had been listed on the State Historic Register and we are hoping to hear good news at the national level soon.
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NAOP solidly supports the planning and construction of a vibrant presidential center to honor our 44th president in a locale that will retain and recognize the value of Chicago’s historic Olmsted parks. However, the current construction plans in Jackson Park and the minimal mitigation efforts set out in the MOA are unacceptable. THE ADVERSE IMPACTS CANNOT BE MITIGATED IN WAYS THAT WILL RETAIN THE INTEGRITY OF JACKSON PARK AND OLMSTED’S WORK.”
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
Your letter in support of South Mountain Reservation was beautiful and well crafted. …. We are truly grateful to have your support to save our local and national treasure. Check out our website! We will feature your letter shortly. - JOYCE RUDIN, COALITION TO SAVE SOUTH MOUNTAIN RESERVATION
FROM NAOP COMMENTS -- ARBORWAY IMPROVEMENTS Viewing the Arborway through the lens of Olmsted’s design underscores the importance of accommodating cyclists and pedestrians as well as automobiles. A priority improvement should be the realization of dedicated and continuous spaces for cyclists and pedestrians (in both directions) throughout the Arborway. The bike network currently has a dangerous gap (between Jamaica Pond and Forest Hills) and this should be eliminated.”
Good bye to Alan Banks and Lee Farrow Cook 2020 was bittersweet in so many ways as NAOP bid a fond farewell to two of the most dedicated and longstanding staffers at the FLO National Historic Site: site manager: Lee Farrow Cook and Supervisory Ranger Alan Banks. We are immensely grateful to them both for their contributions.
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Gaining Media Attention During the last year, Americans faced with the pandemic saw first hand the power and relevance of Olmsteds parks and principles. During the coronavirus, there has also been an immense outpouring of media interest in Olmsted as people have flocked to Olmsted parks for peace and solace. Articles were published in news outlets around the country ranging from the New York Times editorial page to the Charleston Gazette, examining the social, economic and cultural values that Olmsted conveyed through his landscape design. NAOP’s own article, Olmsted in the Age of the Coronavirus, appeared in newspapers -- from South Caroline and Texas to Connecticut and Pennsylvania.
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Here is just a sampling of the news about Frederick Law Olmsted. New York Times Editorial, How to Save Summer 2020 Adrian Benepe, former NYC Parks Commissioner, Parks Are Cathedrals, Especially Now From Ned Friedman, Director of the Arnold Arboretum, Keep Parks Open From Canada’s Globe and Mail, The Need for Parks in a time of Sickness The Reporter’s Notebook of NY1, Central Park remains an Oasis during coronavirus outbreak Boston Globe: Parks are essential—especially during the coronavirus pandemic, New York Times, The Spaces that Make Cities Fairer and More Resilient Eight Old-School Gardening Tips from FLO
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
New Stamps Feature Olmsted Properties The media were not the only ones focusing on Olmsted in 2019-2020. The U.S. Post Office also offered a tribute to some of Olmsted’s designs. Forever Stamps – highlighting gardens and parks – were released mid year, many with an Olmsted connection. The new series -- called American Gardens -- includes stamps featuring: Brooklyn Botanic Garden (Brooklyn, N.Y.) (Job No. 03960) Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens (Akron, Ohio), Warren Manning design, employed for eight years by the Olmsted firm Biltmore Estate Gardens (Asheville, N.C.), Job No. 170.
NAOP Names New President/CEO 2020 marked another turning point in the history of NAOP. The Board announced in January 2020 that it had hired Anne “Dede” Neal Petri to be its first president and CEO and to spearhead the Olmsted 200 celebration. Dede is new as president, but not new to NAOP, having served on the NAOP board from 2001-2003. She first got hooked on Olmsted back in the late 1990s, when she spearheaded the preservation of the five-acre oak and beech forest at the foot of the Washington National Cathedral. Now known as the Olmsted Woods, this urban woodland restoration has been recognized by the Washington Post, the National Park Service and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation for its innovative stormwater management, use of native plants, and successful realization of one of Frederick Law Olmsted Jr’s earliest designs, a functioning outdoor amphitheater.
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Statement of Financial Position as of October 31, 2020 CURRENT ASSETS Cash/Cash Equivalents (unrestricted)
$353,763
Cash/Cash Equivalents (restricted) Papers Olmsted 200 Other to be deposited Pay Pal Pledges Receivable
$27,665 $468,367 $ 19,171 $107 $65,935
Government Grants Receivable
$5,663
Prepaid Expenses
$5339
Total Current Assets
$946,010
Fixed Assets Furniture and Equipment
$10,591
Website
$20,763
Accum. Depreciation/Amortization
(31,354)
TOTAL ASSETS
$946,010
LIABILITIES & NET ASSETS Current Liabilities Accounts Payable
$9799
Total Current Liabilities
$9799
Net assets
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Unrestricted Net Assets
$372,093
Temporarily Restricted Net Assets
$564,118
Total Net Assets
$936,211
TOTAL LIABILITIES & NET ASSETS
$946,010
Total Liabilities and Net Assets, October 31, 2019
$342,775
Total Liabilities and Net Assets, October 31, 2020
$946,010
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
Current Board members and advisors Barbara Yaeger, Chair Madison, CT Philip Schultz, Chair (as of October 2020) Fox Point, WI Philip Schultz, Treasurer Lane Addonizio, Secretary New York, NY Spencer Tunnell Atlanta, GA Alida Silverman Atlanta, GA Arleyn Levee Boston, MA Doug Luetjen Seattle, WA Patrice Kish Boston, MA Lucy Lawliss Brandenton, FL Paul Daniel Marriott, Washington, DC As of October 2020: Mark Buscaino Washington, DC Stephanie Crockatt Buffalo, NY Steven Livengood Washington, DC
Images: Prospect Park, Job No. 00714; Central Park Job No. 00502, Back Bay Fens, Job No. 00916; Jackson Park, Job No. 01902; Downing Park, Job No. 01428; Cleveland Museum of Art, Job No. 05661; Prospect Park; Biltmore, Job No. 00170; World’s End, Job No. 01051; Niagara Falls, Job No. 00617; Bayard Cutting Gardens, Westbrook, Job No. 01047; Jackson Park; South Mountain Reservation, Job No. 02128; Cherokee Park, Job No. 01263; Downing Park; Central Park, Central Park.
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR OLMSTED PARKS 1980 - 2020
Advisory Council Eleanor Ames Portland, ME Kathleen Conner Seattle, WA Julie Crockford Boston, MA Eliza Davidson Seattle, WA Rolf Diamant Woodstock, VT Robert Doyle Oakland, CA Erin Gallentine Brookline, MA Betsy Shure Gross Davis, CA Esley Hamilton St. Louis, MO Donald Harris Seattle, WA Faye Harwell Alexandria, VA Thomas Herrera-Mishler Sarasota, FL
John Karel Ste. Genevieve, MO Anne Knight Seattle, WA Francis Kowsky Buffalo, NY Phil Loughlin Cambridge, MA Larry McCann* Victoria, BC Jean McKee Washington, DC Rosemarie Murane Denver, CO Christine Edstrom O’Hara San Luis Obispo, CA Ed Orser Baltimore, MD Elizabeth Barlow Rogers New York, NY Ann Satterthwaite Washington, DC
*deceased
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NAOP 1200 18th Street NW, Suite 700 Washington, DC 20036
www.olmsted.org