Biographical Note

Dr. J. Horace McFarland (1859-1948) was a well-known author, publisher, horticulturist, and authority on roses.  His printing company, Mount Pleasant Press (later the J. Horace McFarland Company), was based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  It published many of the seed and nursery trade catalogs in the United States during the first half of the twentieth century and was one of the first to apply color processes to commercial print applications.

McFarland wrote over 200 articles in popular journals as well as a dozen books on roses and gardening.  Numerous examples from his photographic archives have appeared in journals and books.

Scope and Content Note

The J. Horace McFarland Collection includes over 3,100 black and white mounted photographs and 445 glass lantern slides of gardens throughout the United States dating from 1900 to 1962.  Many of the photographs indicate the publications in which they appeared.

The Smithsonian Botany and Horticulture Branch Library includes seed and nursery trade catalogs, books, and library material from the J. Horace McFarland Company.  In addition, the United States Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Library has a photographic collection of plant portraits from the McFarland Company.

All images on this web page are from the Archives of American Gardens, J. Horace McFarland Collection.