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Catalog Data

Former owner:
Sinkler, Wharton  Search this
Sinkler, Wharton, Mrs.  Search this
Rotan, Samuel P. Mrs  Search this
Rotan, Samuel  Search this
Rotan, Allethaire  Search this
University of Pennsylvania  Search this
Architect:
McGoodwin, Robert A.  Search this
Provenance:
Wissahickon Garden Club  Search this
Collection Creator:
Garden Club of America  Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Place:
Foxlea (Wyndmoor, Pennslyvania)
United States of America -- Pennslyvania -- Montgomery -- Wyndmoor
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets and photocopies of articles.
General:
Foxlea is one of four parcels from a larger estate known as Lane's End, comprising 4.5 acres with intimate garden rooms between buildings, a large lawn with an orchard, and a bordering 31 acre meadow that is conserved open space. The Tudor style buildings on the property include a 16th century cottage and architectural components imported from England in the 1920's by the originator of the estate, Allethaire Rotan, and assembled by architect Robert Rotan McGoodwin. The current owners constructed their residence by adding a conservatory connecting their cottage to a former woodshed that had been used as a garage. A former stable was converted to a studio and rental apartment in 2007, and other repurposed outbuildings include a former sheep shed and a feed and seed house. The buildings are clustered like a small village around a courtyard. The garden rooms include a formal parterre garden installed in 2002, a vegetable and fruit garden, an orchard, and a grid garden planted with succulents, herbs and annuals.
The parterre garden has four boxwood edged beds around a central pool with a lead fountain of a putto holding a fish. In each quadrant there is a variegated willow tree standard with tulips and allium in the spring followed by lavender in summer. The courtyard adjoining the parterre garden has planted containers, with more planted troughs outside the kitchen door.The grid garden next to the converted stable is inside a high wall with a moon gate, with a bisecting path of stepping stones.The vegetable garden is protected by deer netting; the chicken yard next to it has three cherry trees and abuts a hornbeam hedge with an arched opening planted in 2002. Other features of the gardens include espaliered Asian pear trees, planted troughs, a large lawn with native trees and an evolving orchard, and the common meadow with naturalized daffodils and narcissus.
See also Lane's End (AAG# PA026000).
Samuel and Allethaire Rotan (former owners, 1917-1940); Wharton and Louise Sinkler (former owners, 1940-1972); University of Pennsylvania (former owner, 1972-2000); Robert Rodes McGoodwin (architect, mid-1920's).
Related Materials:
Foxlea related holdings consist of 1 folder (30 digital images)
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.
Topic:
Gardens -- Pennsylvania -- Wyndmoor  Search this
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Identifier:
AAG.GCA, File PA735
See more items in:
The Garden Club of America collection
The Garden Club of America collection / Series 1: United States Garden Images / Pennsylvania
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Gardens
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/kb66b5fd41c-f7fe-4fee-842f-5e6c1ca4829b
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aag-gca-ref30075