Perry Hunt Wheeler (1913-1989), a Georgia native, began his higher education at Emory University, going on to graduate from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1937. Immediately afterward Wheeler enrolled in Harvard University from which he earned a graduate degree in Landscape Architecture in 1938. After graduation Wheeler collaborated on garden projects in Atlanta, Georgia with fellow landscape enthusiast and friend Helen Clarke, and also worked for the Office of Strategic Services doing camouflage planning during WWII. He went on to establish his own landscape architecture practice in Washington, DC and designed in the area from 1948 to 1979.

Wheeler is best known for his work on private gardens in the Washington, DC area. He frequently employed the use of intricate brickwork, low-maintenance planting, and simple water features in creating his charming and functional designs. His most noteworthy commissions outside the private realm include collaboration with Bunny Mellon on the White House Rose Garden, designing a Garden Club of America-commissioned gazebo and its surroundings for the U. S. National Arboretum, and plantings for the National Cathedral and President John F. Kennedy's Gravesite in the Arlington National Cemetery.

Above: Perry Wheeler on right with unidentified man. c. 1960s.  Photographer unknown.

The Perry Wheeler Collection includes photographic images, plans, photographic images, drawings, client correspondence, plant lists, invoices, invitations, certificates, awards, and newspaper and magazine clippings. Most of the professional papers date from the 1950s and 1960s. Noteworthy correspondents include President and Mrs. John F. Kennedy, Ladybird Johnson, Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, and Margaret Truman. Of particular note are documents for Wheeler's public design work includes the White House grounds, Washington Cathedral, U. S. National Arboretum, President John F. Kennedy's Gravesite in Arlington National Cemetery, and the British and Cambodian Embassies in Washington, DC.

The White House Garden. Perry Wheeler on left with
undentified man. c. 1960s. Photographer unknown

There are also over 3,000 35mm slides dating from the 1940s to the early 1970s that document Wheeler's personal travels to Europe, Africa, South America, the Caribbean, Canada, and the American West.

All images on this web page are from the Archives of American Gardens, Perry Wheeler Collection.
 

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