A CENTURY BEFORE THERE WAS AN EARTH DAY OR ARBOR DAY TO CELEBRATE, THERE WAS A MAN WHO ADVOCATED FOR THE ENVIRONMENT THROUGH THE DESIGN OF PARKS.
His driving passion was to bring nature and people into a healthy balance within a world fast becoming urban and industrialized.
He was a man of vision, as he had seen and experienced much in his fascinating lifetime. He had been a journalist, clerk, sailor, farmer, a sanitary commissioner, a gold mine manager, and ultimately a conservationist. He traveled the entirety of the United States writing articles and journals, creating spaces and protecting places — and through it all he was designing America for future generations.
Here in Buffalo, Frederick Law Olmsted’s vision is an everlasting gift. From 1868 to 1897, he designed 26 of Buffalo’s 180 greenspaces. This Sunday is his birthday.
As many of us enjoy our park presents wrapped in green urban fabric with a ribbon of connectivity, let us be humbled by his genius and remain grateful to all who came after him in advocating for and supporting their survival. Let’s keep celebrating Olmsted Week and say Happy Birthday to FLO!
