THE AMAWALK ARBORETUM |
THE AMAWALK ARBORETUM dedicated to the memory of Major Orlando Jay Smith, founder of the Nursery. The plans for the Arboretum have been designed by Vitale, Brinckerhoff & Geiffert, Landscape Architects, under whose supervision we are executing the work. Plans for the executive and display building, in Colonial style, have been designed by Jame Cameron Mackenzie Jr., Architect. Estate owners, park department officials, landscape architects, architects, students and others will be welcomed to the Amawalk Arboretum, and effects of scientific planting will doubtless be of great value and advantage. The above view shows the Arboretum as it will look from the air when completed. From an add in the back of the yearbook for Architectural League of New York 1924.
https://www.lasdonpark.org |
Property was acquired by William and Mildred Lasdon in 1939. They renamed estate "Cobbling Rock Farm". The main house of the estate was built in 1933 by Dr. Voislawsky after the original house was destroyed by a fire. The house is modeled after George Washington’s home in Virginia.
***My assumption the fire ruined the plans for the arboretum.***
William Lasdon is known for establishing a major pharmaceutical company and for his philanthropist endeavors. The Lasdon estate was simply used as a country retreat. The Lasdon family had great interest in horticulture and loved to travel. Along these travels, they brought back many tree specimens and planted them at the estate. https://www.lasdonpark.org/history/