Garden History & Design uses photography and research, the study of good design practices, educational and lecture programs, and internships to develop an appreciation of America’s gardens. 

 

With roots tracing back to 1916, the committee is an amalgamation of the Historic Gardens Committee and the Slide Library of Notable American Parks and Gardens Committee, both of which contributed to the GCA's wealth of historic material concerning America’s gardens. 

 

The committee works closely with the Smithsonian Institution's Archives of American Gardens (AAG) to document cultivated gardens throughout the country.  In honor of the GCA's 75th Anniversary in 1988, The Garden Club of America donated to the Smithsonian Institution its historic collection of 3,000 glass slides along with 30,000 slides of gardens from colonial times to the present. The Garden History and Design Committee encourages club members to add to the collection which  numbers more than 60,000 images and makes up the core of the Archives of American Gardens (AAG). 

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Appearing below are the most recently documented gardens by the French Broad River Garden Club Foundation. Links are provided to view the collection of photos that were accepted into the Smithsonian's AAG, as well as the image caption list, and the garden story.

 

We hope you enjoy experiencing how garden designs have changed throughout history.

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