Maroon medallions on campus walkways educate public about the Olmsted family’s UChicago legacy.
By Maureen McMahon
You may have noticed circular maroon medallions underfoot this past month as you crossed the University of Chicago Hyde Park campus. These decals are Olmsted on Campus tour stops.
Next time you see one, take a moment to scan the QR code and immerse yourself in a brief landscape architecture lesson honoring the UChicago legacy of Frederick Law Olmsted, and his sons, Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., and John Charles Olmsted.
The tour is part of a “year of Olmsted” created by Facilities Services, Chicago Studies, and the UChicago Library to commemorate the bicentennial of Olmsted, who was born on April 26, 1822. It ties into Olmsted200, a national effort led by the Olmsted Network to host events, activities, and panels at Olmsted sites.
Frederick Law Olmsted is the landscape architect and creative genius known as the father of landscape architecture. His vision for democratic public spaces, advancing social equality, and concepts for resilient designs changed the American landscape.
In Chicago, he was the landscape designer of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition and Midway Plaisance, Jackson Park, Washington Park, and many South Side parks. In New York, millions of visitors have him to thank for Central Park.
In 1901, the University of Chicago Board of Trustees engaged the firm established by Olmsted’s sons, the Olmsted Brothers, to design the second plan for the University of Chicago, which was developed in 1902 and is still influential and visible today.
On April 14, Environmental and Urban Studies major Caroline Hugh, AB’25, hosted a walking tour of Olmsted on Campus that she researched as a Chicago Studies fellow alongside Hannah Holborn Gray graduate fellow Heba Alex. About 30 people gathered on a gorgeous spring afternoon to connect the Olmsteds’ values and design vision with the appearance of campus today.
Hugh commented on the Olmsted ideal of designing towards the “genius of the place,” celebrating the inherent unique qualities of a space. For this University, this translated to working with the architecture and trees already present on campus. After draining the swamp where the southern Quad stands, she said, “the Brothers decided to emphasize the monumentality of the buildings themselves with formal allées of trees” that organize open green space. Existing mature trees were protected in place, and you can still see that influence today in the Classics Quadrangle.
As the tour sat across from Cobb Hall on a secluded C-shaped bench installed by the Class of 1903, Hugh pointed out that Olmsted’s belief in the “civilizing” power of public parks inspired the bench, which is one of the few permanent features for seating in the Quadrangle.
The self-guided 11-stop Olmsted on Campus tour is free to the public and open through the end of April. It is informed by a beautiful online Olmsted on Campus GIS Story Map, where you can explore Olmsted’s abiding influence on the city as well as uncover the Olmsted Brothers’ plan for the historic campus.
The map project was a collaboration between Chicago Studies, the Architectural Studies program, the Library’s Special Collections, Facilities Services, UChicago Arts, and Chicago historian Julia Bachrach.
The campus “year of Olmsted” will feature a panel discussion on “Landscape and Social Equity” featuring Brian McCammack of Lake Forest College, Julia Bachrach, Elena Madison from Project for Public Spaces, and Ernie Wong from Site Design. This serves as a “grand finale” on Fredrick Law Olmsted’s 201st birthday, Wednesday, April 26 at 5:30 p.m. at Cochrane-Woods Art Center.