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| South Park Conservatory, AKA Buffalo and Erie Co. Botanical Gardens |
The Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens came into being at the pinnacle of the city's glory, the start of the 1900's. No crown of success was more becoming to a great city than the Victorian Era greenhouse. Built in 1900 with the brilliant collaboration of Olmsted (the park), Lord and Burnham (the glass structure), and John F. Crowell (botanist). Olmsted had designed Cazanovia and South Park for the South Buffalo area, and planned, what was originally known as the South Park Conservatory, to house varieties of tropical plants as contrast to the outdoor plant design of the park. Plant explorer, Crowell, was set to the task of gathering the specimens. The greenhouse, designed by Lord and Burnham, was distinctly Victorian and reminiscent of the great botanical gardens of England. South Park, to this day, is one of only a few examples of this style in North America, and at the time of its creation, was the toast of the Pan American Exposition of 1901. So spectacular was its design, that it drew visitors from the North Buffalo location of the World's Fair out to the southern edges of the city. The impressive nature of the Botanical Gardens spread beyond the Exposition with a popularity that would continue for many years after.
