History of Landscape Architecture A Timeline of Landscape Architecture   * Click on the thumbnail then to view image. 1771 Jefferson records his early thoughts on landscape design in a memorandum book, spurred by his ideas on improving Monticello. 1863 The title "landscape architect" is first used in New York City, by Central Park designers Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux. ( Photos by Bruce Davidson/Magnum) 1858-91 Between the design of Central Park and his retirement, Frederick Law Olmsted became the acknowledged father of American landscape architecture. It was his vision that established the lofty ideals that will forever guide the profession's underlying philosophy. (Photos courtesy Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site) 1868-70 FLO planned community of Riverside, Illinois, is an early model of community preserving riverfront for public space. 1872-95 H. W. S. Cleveland becomes an early advocate for conserving large interconnected systems of open space and develops Minneapolis' metropolitan park system. 1850-1900 New forms of designed landscapes emerged: the urban park, cemeteries, amusement parks, camps, clubs, golf courses, resorts, spas and zoos, and larger housing environments. (Photo by Alan Ward) 1899 The American Society of Landscape Architects was founded. 1900 Formal instruction in landscape architecture began at Harvard, the nation's most prestigious university. 1905 U.S.D.A. Forest Service established. 1909 The Blue Ridge Highway gives birth to the idea of the parkway. (Blue Ridge Parkway photo 11/99 62 Parkway plan) 1916 The National Park Service is formally established. Landscape architects institute the concept of master planning. 1930s Planning entire communities emerges as practice area. Drawings courtesy Arnold Alanen; photo by Kenneth Helphand 1933 New Deal programs open new horizons for landscape architects in the public sector. 1921-42 A vast system of state parks and forests is founded, remaining unparalleled anywhere in the world. (Photo by Kenneth Helphand) 1960 Large-scale landscape planning gains in application. 1963 Institutional and corporate landscapes are epitomized by Deere and Company Headquarters in Moline, Illinois, and PepsiCo in Purchase, New York. (Photo by Alan Ward ) 1964-65 The new towns of Irvine, California; Reston, Virginia; and Columbia, Maryland offer alternatives to typical subdivision development. (Photo by Walter Calahan) 1969 Ian McHarg's Design with Nature is published, establishing principles of landscape planning. 1970 The restoration of disturbed sites to their earlier natural character, and reclaiming quarries, strip-mined areas, and landfills for productive purposes becomes a focus of the profession. (Photos by Jennifer Bates) 1974 Forest Service landscape architects developed a visual resource management process that was applied to 190 million acres of public land. (USFS visual analysis) 1976 The concept of historic preservation grew beyond the confines of architecture to include the landscape itself, becoming an important area of practice for landscape architects. ~1985 Advanced geographic information systems emerges as an important tool with ecological values and new technology applied to large-scale land planning. 1997 An estimated 30,000 landscape architects practice in the U.S. alone. More than 70 programs in landscape architecture exist at 53 American colleges and universities, forming an education system in this field unparalleled anywhere in the world. (Photo courtesy EDAW )