Bonus Videos

Scroll through the collection below and watch the bonus videos–The Fall and Rise of Central Park, Photography and Design in Olmsted's Boston Parks, Changes and Challenges in Olmsted Parks, The Campaign to Save the Linear Park in Atlanta, Olmsted and Chicago: Riverside and the Columbian World's Exposition and Louisville: From Olmsted to the 21st Century.

The Fall and Rise of Central Park

Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing AmericaThe Fall and Rise of Central Park

In the decades after Olmsted’s death, many of the parks he created were neglected and misused. For Central Park in New York City, the low point came in the 1970s. The Central Park Conservancy was founded 1980 to bring the park back. Its mission statement: To make the park clean, safe, and beautiful. By the late 1980s, Olmsted and Vaux’s original vision for Central Park had been largely restored.

Photography and Design in Olmsted's Boston Parks

Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing AmericaPhotography and Design in Olmsted’s Boston Parks

Olmsted pioneered the use of photography to show before, during, and after construction.

Changes and Challenges

Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing AmericaChanges and Challenges in Olmsted Parks

Olmsted feared that the open space in a park would be a temptation to a growing city. His fears have been realized. In many places, parts of his parks have been redesigned and some have been nearly destroyed. The integrity of Olmsted’s parks has been threatened by golf courses and stadiums in Boston, large teepees and lookout towers in Louisville, and highways and overpasses in Buffalo.

The Campaign to Save the Linear Park in Atlanta

Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing AmericaThe Campaign to Save the Olmsted Linear Park in Atlanta

The Preservation of an Olmsted Park in the Druid Hills suburb in Atlanta.

Olmsted and Chicago: Riverside and the Columbian World's Exposition

Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing AmericaOlmsted and Chicago: Riverside and the Columbian World's Exp

Olmsted designs a residential community, major parks, and the World’s Exposition.

Louisville: From Olmsted to the 21st Century

Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing AmericaLouisville: From Olmsted to the 21st Century

A 4,000 acre is being built in the Olmsted tradition for the city of Louisville, Kentucky.

Website Produced by WNED PBS

Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing Americais a co-production of WNED PBS, Buffalo/Toronto and Florentine Films/Hott Productions Inc., made possible by major grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor and The Margaret L. Wendt Foundation. With funding provided by HSBC, The Tiffany & Co. Foundation and The C.E. & S. Foundation. With additional support from The Peter C. Cornell Trust and Mass Humanities.