John Charles Olmsted (September 14, 1852 – February 24, 1920[1]) was an American landscape architect. The nephew and adopted son of Frederick Law Olmsted, he worked with his father and his younger brother, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., in their father's firm. After their father retired, the brothers took over leadership and founded Olmsted Brothers as a landscape design firm. The firm became well known for designing many urban parks, college campuses, and other public places. John Olmsted's body of work from over 40 years as a landscape architect has left its mark on the American urban landscape.
Early life
John Charles Olmsted was born in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1852 to John Olmsted and Mary Cleveland (Perkins) Olmsted. His father, John, had contracted tuberculosis, which at the time had no treatment. Fresh air and healthy living, including exercise, were recommended. Some sanatoriums were established in mountain areas.
The John Olmsted family returned to the United States to reside at Tosomock Farm on Staten Island in New York.[2] After his father died, his mother remarried, to John's brother, Frederick Law Olmsted. Frederick adopted John as his son. Later he and Mary had a son of their own, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., born in 1870.
Career
John Olmsted began his career at his father's firm, where he was later joined by his younger brother Frederick. After their father retired, the two took over leadership, establishing the firm as Olmsted Brothers. They each contracted separately for some projects.
Olmsted also designed individual parks in New Orleans; Watertown, New York; and Chicago, Illinois. His work in park design led to commissions for numerous institutions such as school campuses, civic buildings, and state capitals, as well as designs for large residential areas, including roads and schools. His work in comprehensive planning for the communities surrounding industrial plants and factories is considered especially noteworthy.
In all his work, John Olmsted retained a sensitivity to the natural beauty of the site, including its views, vistas, and greenways. He wanted to ensure that communities and public areas must be comfortable and inviting. He favored modest, informal structures in a naturalistic setting to large, imposing structures.
1902 - Overton Park (342 acres) and Riverside Park (340 acres) in Memphis, Tennessee, as well as a parkway system of broad boulevards.
1903 - A comprehensive plan for Seattle's city parks and boulevards. John Olmsted was the firm's principal designer in Seattle and laid out a 20-mile-long system of interconnected parkways that linked parks and playfields, greenways, and natural lakes and waterways including Volunteer Park (Seattle).[3]
^Thayer, William Roscoe. The Harvard Graduates' Magazine, Volume 28, p. 722. Accessed March 28, 2023. "Bussey Institution 1884-85 John Charles Olmsted b. 14 Sept., 1852, at Geneva, Switzerland; d. at Brookline. 24 Feb., 1920"
^Witold Rybczynski (1999). A Clearing in the Distance: Frederick Law Olmsted and America in the Nineteenth Century. Scribner: New York, p.124.