The Gardens

THE MARSTONS ORIGINALLY PURCHASED their acreage on a vacant, arid street (now Seventh Avenue) adjacent to the unimproved City Park (now named Balboa Park) in 1903. Marston and his family transformed their wild, sagebrush-studded desert into a handsomely landscaped, tree-shaded haven with sweeping lawns, by adding both formal and rustic Arts and Crafts styled canyon gardens.

Landscape architects Samuel Parsons, Jr. and George Cooke designed the initial landscape plan from 1903 to 1907. John Nolen, Hale Walker, Thomas Church, and William Templeton Johnson redesigned the formal gardens from 1926 to 1928.

Preserving these historic and cultural landscapes reflects George Marston's life values: beauty, love of nature, parks, culture, historic preservation, history, and philanthropy.