United States of America -- New York -- Nassau County -- Old Westbury
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets, photocopies of articles and other information.
General:
The landscaping for Groton Place was designed in the 1930s by Umberto Innocenti and Richard K. Webel, featuring uninterrupted axial passages with stopping places but no feeling of enclosure. Since then the trees on the property have matured, the serpentine yew hedge has filled in, and the original oval rose garden has been converted to flowering shrubs. A ha-ha separates the house and the ornamental gardens from horse pastures. A pinetum shades the rectangular swimming pool, and woodlands on the property are filled with native trees and shrubs. A mature cedar alleĢe leads to the stables, the one example of a passage that ends in a structure. Architects McKim, Mead & White designed a house and outbuildings at Groton Place in 1912, but that house was razed in 1948 and another Georgian house on the property built in the 1930s is the residence of the current owners.
In 1968 a parcel of 250 acres of land was sold to a golf club, and the remaining 108 acres of Groton Place were placed in a conservation easement for protection.
Persons associated with the garden include William Willis (deed holder, 1700s); members of the John Titus and Jacob Hicks families (former owners, 1700s-circa 1895); Robert Dudley Winthrop (former owner, 1895); Beekman Winthrop (former owner, 1912); Grenville L. Winthrop (former owner, 1940); Robert W. Winthrop (former owner, 1943-1997); Henry Renwick Sedgwick (architect, 1932); McKim, Meade & White (architects of former house and stables, circa 1912); Umberto Innocenti (d. 1968) & Richard K.Webel (d. 2000)(landscape architects, 1930s).
Related Materials:
Groton Place related holdings consist of 2 folders (14 35mm. slides (photographs))
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.
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.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
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.
