| Abstract: |
A. Donald Gray (1891-1939) was a landscape architect and designer in Cleveland, Ohio, from 1920-1939. Gray worked briefly
with Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., in Brookline, Massachusetts, before establishing a landscape architecture practice in Cleveland.
He designed many private gardens and estates for some of the most elite families of Cleveland and its outlying suburbs, including
the noted private development of Fairhill Rd. houses in 1931. Gray was also the landscape designer for several public projects,
including the Cedar-Central apartments, the first federal public-housing project in the nation, and many of Cleveland's public
parks. Perhaps his most notable achievement was the creation of the WPA-funded Horticultural Gardens for the Great Lakes Exposition,
1936-1937, some of which remain on the site north of Cleveland's Municipal Stadium. The gardens were named for Gray as a memorial
after his death. Gray took several trips to England, South America, Mexico and elsewhere throughout his career to study the
landscaping of great houses and public places. He also contributed a regular gardening column to the Cleveland Press during
the mid-1930s. The collection consists of individual and group portraits of A. Donald Gray, his friends and business associates;
views of his landscaping projects; scenes from the Great Lakes Exposition, and vacation photographs. Included in the oversize
materials are images of his garden and landscaping designs for several Cleveland, Ohio families. Four of these photographs
were taken by Margaret Bourke-White.
|