J. Horace McFarland
Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Printer, horticulturist, conservationist, and "City Beautiful" advocate. President, American Civic Association, 1904-24, and editor, "American Rose Annual," 1916-43. He worked successfully for preservation of Niagara Falls and creation of the National Park Service. McFarland stressed the duty of civic leaders to build a beautiful, healthful environment. His Breeze Hill home and gardens were in Harrisburg's Bellevue Park.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
J. Horace McFarland was a Harrisburg printer whose passion for beauty made him a national force in the early conservation and civic-improvement movements. As longtime president of the American Civic Association, he championed the "City Beautiful" ideal—that clean, green, well-designed cities uplift their citizens. He fought successfully to protect Niagara Falls from industrial exploitation and campaigned for the creation of the National Park Service in 1916. A devoted rose grower, he edited the "American Rose Annual" for decades from his Breeze Hill home and gardens in Harrisburg.
Why it matters
McFarland helped shape the Progressive-era conviction that natural beauty and good civic design are public goods worth defending, leaving his mark on Niagara Falls and the national parks system.
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Related people
- · J. Horace McFarland
Related events
- · Creation of the National Park Service
Themes & tags
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