Over the next three years, Lincoln Memorial Garden, a 100-acre retreat along the shores of Lake Springfield, will host a series of events highlighting the Garden’s 75th Anniversary and the activities of the dedicated people who made it happen.
We will commemorate the anniversary of the planting of the first acorns, the dedication of the Lincoln Council Ring, and the formal presentation of the Garden to the City of Springfield.
One very determined woman made it all happen. In the early 1930s, Harriet Knudson, a gardening enthusiast and civic volunteer, approached Springfield’s mayor with an idea. She suggested that land be set aside on the shore of the city’s future lake for a garden to honor Abraham Lincoln’s legacy. The mayor agreed -- if Mrs. Knudson could find sponsors for the project. She successfully engaged the Garden Club of Illinois and convinced Jens Jensen, a nationally renowned landscape architect, to design the Garden.
Jensen was considered the dean of the prairie style of landscape architecture and a leader of the Midwestern conservation movement. During his long career, he designed hundreds of parks, golf courses, and private gardens. Jensen collaborated on projects with Daniel Burnham and Frank Lloyd Wright. His private client list included Henry and Edsel Ford, Harold Florsheim, and Ogden Armour. When Mrs. Knudson approached the 75-year-old architect with the idea of designing a living memorial to Lincoln, he immediately accepted the challenge. Lincoln Memorial Garden proved to be his last major public project.
Jensen worked with Mrs. Knudsen for more than a year on the initial design. He was able to look at a barren field next to the slowly filling basin of a future lake and picture trails, huge trees, wild flowers, curving paths, and quiet spaces. The idea was to fill the area with the trees, plants, and wildlife that Lincoln would have remembered in Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois. Once the plan was completed, the next challenge was to fulfill his vision.
Many of the seedlings and plants needed to start the Garden were contributed by garden clubs throughout the state. Over several years, hundreds of volunteers, including dedicated garden club women, boy scouts and girl scouts, participated in many plantings. Jensen continued to supervise the project while Mrs. Knudson directed the work.
In September, 2010, Lincoln Memorial Garden members honored the commitment of Garden supporters over the decades by recognizing Jens Jensen’s 150th birthday. Volunteers and staff also have planned a series of public events over the next three years that will commemorate special dates in the early history of the Garden.
November 14, 2011, is the anniversary of the first acorn planting. In 1936 on that date, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and garden club members from throughout Illinois, following Jensen’s plan, planted the acorns that are now groves of towering oak trees. We plan to commemorate that activity, and scouts from central Illinois have been invited to the Garden to celebrate what was accomplished.
June 18, 2012, is the anniversary of the dedication of the Lincoln Council Ring. We plan to commemorate that event with a ceremony in the Garden. The Lincoln Council Ring was the first of the eight low stonewall circles that are integral to the Garden’s design. In Jensen’s plan, some of the rings are placed with a view of the lake, while others are hidden among the trees, creating an almost room-like setting.
October 4 and 5, 2013, is the 75th Anniversary of the dedication of the Garden. The Garden Club of Illinois formally presented Lincoln Memorial Garden to the city on that date. Since 1952, a private not-for-profit organization has maintained the Garden, and volunteers continue to be crucial to its day-to-day operation. Officials from the City of Springfield and many Garden members and supporters will be invited to a celebration.
Please note: The exact dates of the celebrations will be announced as we approach the anniversary dates.
In order to maintain, operate, and improve the Garden over the next 75 years, it will take an effort like the one made by Mrs. Knudson, Jens Jensen, and all the early volunteers who founded the Garden. They turned their dream into a reality, as must those who follow in their footsteps.
For More Information Contact:
Jim Matheis
Lincoln Memorial Garden
2301 East Lake Dr.
Springfield IL 62712
217-529-1111
