Bar Harbor -- Kenarden

Object Details

sova.aag.gca_ref8150
GUID
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/kb638447c52-0b53-49c9-b91b-690e7e5929ef
General
The original gardens at Kenarden were designed by landscape architect Beatrix Jones Farrand (1872-1959) early in the last century and have been restored and replanted by the current owners. The gardens include a formal rose garden with boxwood edging that has a contemporary Lunaform urn at its center. The fomal sunken Italianate garden's balustrade and pergola were replicated by garden designer Dennis Bracale, and the flower beds were replanted. Urns created by Eric Ellis Soderholtz in the early 20th century are in situ in the Italianate garden as well as around the residence. Large cutting and vegetable gardens were installed in the same location as the historic gardens, alongside greenhouses. Many of the original outhouses remain on the property as well as mature specimens including a Japanese umbrella pine, a very large hawthorn tree, a mature gingko, and very mature pieris, kalmia and rhododendron. An iron fence surrounding the property was added with new perimeter plantings. The drive from the main entrance cuts through native woods that are maintained as a decorative feature.
Kenarden Lodge was one of the original summer properties built at the end of the 19th century in Mount Desert, Maine. The turreted mansion with its own electrical plant designed by New York architects Rowe and Baker in 1892 was torn down in the 1960s and another house was built in its place circa 1970 by the architectural firm Carroll, Grisdale & Van Alen. The first owner of the property was financier John Stewart Kennedy; the estate was sold in the 1930s to Ethel Mallinckrot Dorrance, widow of Dr. John Thompson Dorrance, a chemist at Campbell who invented condensed canned soups.
Encouraged by Beatrix Farrand, Eric Ellis Soderholtz switched from photography to manufacturing garden urns and other ornaments, some of which remain at Kenarden.
Persons associated with the garden include John Stewart Kennedy and members of the Kennedy family (former owners, 1892-1933); Ethel Mallinckrot Dorrance (former owner 1933-1958); Ethel Dorrance Colket (former owner 1958-1966); Rowe and Baker (architects of original house, 1892); Beatrix Jones Farrand (landscape architect, circa 1915); Carroll, Grisdale & Van Alen (architects of current house, 1970-1972; firm in business 1946-1973 ); AB & JR Hodgkins, Inc. (builders of current house, 1970-1972); Dennis Bracale, Gardens by Design (landscape designer).
Landscape architect
Farrand, Beatrix, 1872-1959
Garden designer
Bracale, Dennis
Sculptor
Soderholtz, Eric E.
Former owner
Kennedy, John Stewart
Dorrance, Ethel Mallincknot
Architect
Rowe & Baker
Carroll, Grisdale & Van Alen
Provenance
Garden Club of Mount Desert
Collection Creator
Garden Club of America
Place
Kenarden (Bar Harbor, Maine)
United States of America -- Maine -- Hancock County -- Bar Harbor
Topic
Gardens -- Maine -- Bar Harbor
Landscape architect
Farrand, Beatrix, 1872-1959
Garden designer
Bracale, Dennis
Sculptor
Soderholtz, Eric E.
Former owner
Kennedy, John Stewart
Dorrance, Ethel Mallincknot
Architect
Rowe & Baker
Carroll, Grisdale & Van Alen
Provenance
Garden Club of Mount Desert
See more items in
The Garden Club of America collection
The Garden Club of America collection / Series 1: United States Garden Images / Maine
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.
Custodial History
The Garden Club of Mount Desert facilitated the submission of this garden's documentation.
Archival Repository
Archives of American Gardens
Identifier
AAG.GCA, File ME044
Type
Archival materials
Collection Citation
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
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.
Bibliography
This property is featured in The Garden Club of America Bulletin, September, 1934; "Beautiful Gardens in America" by Louise Shelton, 1924; "Lost Bar Harbor" by G.W. Helfrich and Gladys O'Neil, 1982.
Scope and Contents
The folders includes worksheets, historical information about the property, and a garden tour description.
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.
Related Materials
Kenarden related holdings consist of 3 folders (36 35 mm. slides; 15 digital images.; 4 photographic prints; 3 glass lantern slides)
See others in
J. Horace McFarland Collection, 1900-1961
AAG.GCA_ref8150
Large EAD
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/kb638447c52-0b53-49c9-b91b-690e7e5929ef
AAG.GCA
AAG
Record ID
ebl-1643208220039-1643210179962-0
Bar Harbor -- Kenarden
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
Bar Harbor -- Kenarden
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
1 result(s)
  • The Garden Club of America collection
    sova.aag.gca
    GUID
    https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/kb617385372-1028-4cb7-b07d-04fea2e51c47
    Creator
    Garden Club of America
    Names
    New York Flower Show
    Topic
    Gardens -- France
    Gardens -- Italy
    Gardens -- Japan
    Gardens -- Mexico
    Flower shows
    Gardening -- United States -- societies, etc
    Gardens -- England
    Landscape architecture
    Gardens -- United States
    Gardens -- Spain
    Gardens -- Scotland
    Creator
    Garden Club of America
    See more items in
    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.
    Summary
    This collection contains over 37,000 35mm slides, 3,000 glass lantern slides and garden files that may include descriptive information, photocopied articles (from journals, newspapers, or books), planting lists, correspondence, brochures, landscape plans and drawings. Garden files were compiled by Garden Club of America (GCA) members for most of the gardens included in the collection. Some gardens have been photographed over the course of several decades; others only have images from a single point in time. In addition to images of American gardens, there are glass lantern slides of the New York Flower Show (1941-1951) and trips that GCA members took to other countries, including Mexico (1937), Italy, Spain, Japan (1935), France (1936), England (1929), and Scotland. A number of the slides are copies of historic images from outside repositories including horticultural and historical societies or from horticultural books and publications. The GCA made a concerted effort in the mid-1980s to acquire these images in order to increase its documentation of American garden history. Because of copyright considerations, use of these particular images may be restricted.
    Accruals note
    The GCA continues to document American gardens and submit images and documentation to the Archives of American Gardens. Further accruals are expected.
    Biographical/Historical note
    The Garden Club of America was established in 1913 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when the Garden Club of Philadelphia and eleven other garden clubs met to create a national garden club. Its purpose is to foster the knowledge and love of gardening and to restore and protect the quality of the environment through educational programs and gardening and conservation efforts. The GCA was incorporated in Delaware in 1923, with its headquarters established in New York City. Today, local clubs are organized under twelve regional zones. The GCA continues its tradition of hosting flower shows and publishing material related to gardening in the United States. The GCA's glass lantern slides were used by The GCA for presentations and lectures about notable gardens throughout the United States dating back to colonial times. An effort was made in the late 1980s, in preparation of the 75th anniversary of the Garden Club of America's founding, to collect the disbursed slides. These slides were to eventually form the Slide Library of Notable American Parks and Gardens. The informational value of this collection is extensive since a number of images of the more than 4,500 gardens represented show garden designs that have changed over time or no longer exist. While the majority of images document a range of designed upper and upper-middle class gardens throughout the U.S., the scope of the collection is expanding as volunteers photograph and document contemporary gardens including community and vernacular gardens. The gardens illustrate the design work of dozens of landscape architects including Marian Coffin, Beatrix Farrand, Lawrence Halprin, Hare & Hare, Umberto Innocenti, Gertrude Jekyll, Jens Jensen, Warren Manning, the Olmsted Brothers, Charles Platt, Ellen Biddle Shipman, and Fletcher Steele. Because of their proximity to the gardens, works of notable architects and sculptors may also be featured in the images.
    Extent
    37000 Slides (photographs) (35mm slides)
    33 Linear feet ((garden files))
    3,000 Lantern slides
    Date
    circa 1920-present
    Custodial History note
    The GCA's Slide Library of Notable American Parks and Gardens was donated to the Smithsonian Institution in 1992; this became the core collection of the Archives of American Gardens.
    Archival Repository
    Archives of American Gardens
    Identifier
    AAG.GCA
    Type
    Collection descriptions
    Archival materials
    Slides (photographs)
    Lantern slides
    Plans (drawings)
    Brochures
    Articles
    Correspondence
    Clippings
    Citation
    Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America 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.
    Genre/Form
    Plans (drawings)
    Brochures
    Articles
    Correspondence
    Clippings
    Lantern slides
    Slides (photographs)
    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.
    AAG.GCA
    Large EAD
    https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/kb617385372-1028-4cb7-b07d-04fea2e51c47
    AAG.GCA
    AAG
    Record ID
    ebl-1562776092361-1562776095300-0
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