Cultural Landscape Report for Washington Square

DHM Design; Pressley Associates, Landscape Architects; RK&K Engineering

This CLR consolidates the information contained in previous studies, combined with additional research related to the landscape’s history and significance, and sets forth recommendations for its future treatment and management as an integral component of Independence National Historical Park. Originally known as Southeast Square, Washington Square belongs to a group of five squares originally laid‐out by William Penn and his surveyor‐general Thomas Holme in 1682 when they established the street grid for the city of Philadelphia. In 1825, the original squares were renamed in honor of important American figures: Washington, Franklin, Logan, Rittenhouse and Penn. Today, Washington Square is a 6.4‐acre urban park bounded by city streets on all sides and adjoining Independence Square at its northeast corner, and is managed by the National Park Service as part of Independence National Historical Park. Washington Square was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981 under “The Four Public Squares of Philadelphia Thematic Resource.” Beyond its original concept by Penn and Holme,Washington Square has a rich history that reflectsthe growth and development of Philadelphia. Theboundaries of the current square are largely asspecified in the city plan drawn by Thomas Holmein 1683. Of the original squares, Washington Squareis the only one to have been granted a patentspecifically for burials and until 1794 the squarefunctioned as a potter’s field, as well as the site ofburials associated with the Revolutionary War forvictims of the yellow fever epidemic. Trees forornamental purposes were first introduced around1794, and this practice expanded dramatically in thefirst half of the nineteenth century, guided by thedesign work of George Bridport and others, whoalso developed the square with a symmetrical pathsystem for promenading. Subsequent re‐designs of the square include workby William Dixey (1881), Olmsted Brothers (1915)and G. Edwin Brumbaugh (1957), who preserved theessential concept of a symmetrical urban squarewith a developed tree canopy. The first officialWashington monument was installed in the lastmajor renovation by Brumbaugh; it is part of the Memorial to the Unknown Revolutionary War Soldier. While Washington Square is owned by the city ofPhiladelphia, the National Park Service (NPS)acquired an easement in 2005 and is nowresponsible for the care and control of the landscape.Prior to the transfer to NPS, the city undertook anumber of capital projects to improve the conditionof the square, including replacement of many of theexisting furnishings and repaving walks. At thesame time, NPS undertook numerous studies tobetter understand the history of this importantproperty, and these studies form the foundation forthis Cultural Landscape Report (CLR).

Cultural Landscape Report for Washington Square

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