Tyler in Smith County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)

History of the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden

Photographed by Larry D. Moore, June 22, 2019

1. History of the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden Marker

Inscription. The property that is now home to the Tyler Rose Garden was first purchased by the City of Tyler in 1912 for the construction of a park and fairgrounds. After many years and at the urging of the former American Rose Society President Dr. Horace McFarland, an application to the Works Project Administration (WPA) was made in 1938 to fund the construction of a municipal rose garden. The $181,255 federal grant was thought to be the largest municipal park and rose garden project approved by the WPA in that era. The funds were used to construct a stone picnic pavilion, balcony, stairs, and other garden features. Keith Maxwell, the WPA landscape architect, drew the plan for the park and rose garden. The plan was ultimately revised by Henry Thompson, a local nurseryman, who laid out walkways and planted trees and shrubbery. Thompson would later be killed while serving as a fighter pilot during World War II. The garden would eventually be dedicated in his memory. Following the war, Robert Shelton Jr. became the Superintendent of the Parks and Recreation Department and made it his top priority to complete the garden. In 1952 the Tyler Rose Garden was officially opened. The roses in the first garden were donated by local nurseries with the intent of created a living catalogue of roses produced by the Tyler rose industry. Nearly 3,000 rose bushes were used in the first planting.

Erected by The Gertrude Windsor Garden Club.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Horticulture & Forestry. In addition, it is included in the Works Progress Administration (WPA) projects series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1912.

Location. 32° 20.753′ N, 95° 19.3′ W. Marker is in Tyler, Texas, in Smith County. It can be reached from West Front Street (State Highway 31) east of Rose Park

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Drive. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Tyler TX 75702, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American South,

specifically in the Deep South,

and in the Piney Woods.

Globally, it is in North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the Republic of Texas,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Smith County Rose Industry and the Tyler Rose Garden (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Butler College (approx. 0.4 miles away); Whitaker-McClendon House (approx. ¾ mile away); The Patterson Home (approx. 0.8 miles away); Richard Bennett Hubbard (approx. 0.9 miles away); Oakwood Cemetery (approx. 0.9 miles away); Judge Stockton P. Donley (approx. 0.9 miles away); Chilton-Lipstate-Taylor House (approx. one mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Tyler.

History of the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden Marker Area image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Larry D. Moore, June 22, 2019

2. History of the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden Marker Area

Credits. This page was last revised on December 20, 2023. It was originally submitted on July 23, 2019, by Larry D. Moore of Del Valle, Texas. This page has been viewed 589 times since then and 24 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on July 23, 2019, by Larry D. Moore of Del Valle, Texas. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.