Olmsted Brothers
| Olmsted Brothers | |
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| General Information | |
| Location | Brookline, Massachusetts |
| Timespan | 1898-2000 |
| Practice Type | Landscape Architecture |
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About the Firm
The Olmsted Brothers company was a landscape architectural firm in the United States, established in 1898 by brothers John Charles Olmsted (1852–1920) and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (1870–1957), sons of the landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted..
The Olmsted Brothers inherited the nation's first landscape architecture business from their father Frederick Law Olmsted. This firm was a successor to the earlier firm of Olmsted, Olmsted and Eliot after the death of their partner Charles Eliot in 1897. The two brothers were among the founding members of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) and played an influential role in creating the National Park Service. Prior to their takeover of the firm, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. had worked as an apprentice under his father, helping to design projects such as Biltmore Estate and the World's Columbian Exposition before graduating from Harvard University. The firm employed nearly 60 staff at its peak in the early 1930s. Notable landscape architects in the firm included James Frederick Dawson and Percival Gallagher. The last Olmsted family member in the firm, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., retired in 1949. The firm itself remained in operation, moving from Brookline in 1980 and continuing in Fremont, New Hampshire until 2000. This created one continuous firm from 1858–2000.
Beginning in 1857 with the design for Central Park in New York City, Frederick Law Olmsted (1822–1903), his sons and successor firm created designs for more than 6,000 landscapes across North America, including many of the world's most important parks. Olmsted’s remarkable design legacy includes Prospect Park in Brooklyn, Boston’s Emerald Necklace, Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, Mount Royal in Montreal, the grounds of the United States Capitol and the White House, and Washington Park, Jackson Park and the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 in Chicago. Olmsted’s sons were founding members of the American Society of Landscape Architects and played an influential role in the creation of the National Park Service. From Buffalo to Louisville, Atlanta to Seattle, Baltimore to Los Angeles, the Olmsteds’ work reflects a vision of American communities and American society still relevant today—a commitment to visually compelling and accessible green space that restores and nurtures the body and spirit of all people, regardless of their economic circumstances. The Olmsteds believed in the restorative value of landscape and that parks can bring social improvement by promoting a greater sense of community and providing recreational opportunities, especially in urban environments.
Projects
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Listing
| Project | Completed | Address | Image |
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| Project | Completed | Address | Image |
| Clifton Mansion | February 1852 | 2301 St. Lo Drive | |
| Clifton Park | 2801 Harford Road | ||
| Patterson Park | 1827 | Eastern Avenue, between Patterson Park and Ellwood Avenues | |
| Stony Run Park | 1903 | 200 block W. Cold Spring Lane |
