Photographs by Stephanie Pool
In 1945, a group of visionary women banded together to save this extraordinary 11-acre property from development, and to create a center for the community to enjoy the arts and nature. Marin Art and Garden Center was established 77 years ago this summer and this year, we had an additional reason to celebrate our anniversary. In July the Center was named to the National Register of Historic Places, honoring its cultural significance for its architecture, landscape design, and social history.
At a celebration on August 3, we hosted a gathering of friends and supporters, including County Supervisor Katie Rice, representatives from the Ross Town Council Bill Kircher and Julie McMillan, as well as the chair of our own Horticultural Advisory Committee Richard Turner, members of the Ross Historical Society Joe Barton, Fran Cappelletti and Richard Torney, daughter of José Moya del Piño, Tina Kun, and of course past and present members of our Board of Trustees and staff.
Executive Director Antonia Adezio recalled the dedicated efforts of everyone who worked on the long and intensive nomination project, including Chris Pattillo and Cathy Garrett of PGA Design, who undertook a meticulous survey of the site from buildings to fenceposts, and Valerie Nagel, the historic architect who stewarded the application through to its successful completion. Board of Trustees President, Tom Perry, acknowledged the many contributors to the Center’s enduring vitality, including founder Caroline Livermore, whose grandson Sam was in attendance, as well as the Marin Garden Club and the Ross Historical Society–Moya Library.
At the conclusion of the event, we laid a wreath on the memorial plaque that commemorates the Center’s incorporation, honoring “the spirit of the founders in order that we might carry the success forward into the next 77 years.”
