COURT-HOUSE SQUARE 
of the formal style so great, that the prevailing tendency is strongly 
established toward a park-like treatment. This park-like treat- 
ment in its best form involves the following features: 
1. Rather extensive plantings of hardy native deciduous shade 
trees. These should be placed around the borders of the lot, the 
spaces in the center and about the building being left free of trees. 
2. Development of good lawn areas. Such lawns can be es- 
tablished only where the ground is free of trees. 
3. Foundation plantings of hardy shrubbery and evergreens 
about the building. 
4. The placing of attractive lawn benches at appropriate 
points, especially along the marginal sidewalk under the shade 
of trees and facing the walk. 
5. The exclusion from the grounds of trite and silly “orna- 
mental features,” such as cast-iron statuary, memorial statues of 
local heroes, antiquated artillery, unnecessary fountains, pattern 
flower beds, and all similar rubbish so dear to the heart of the av- 
erage court-house janitor, the sheriff and the board of county com- 
missioners. 
6. Walks should be direct from the court-house entrances to 
the principal traffic points. These principal traffic points are nearly 
always at the corners of the square, so that a system of diagonal 
walks is almost necessary. 
Illustration 
The example here reproduced is a typical court-house square 
from Marshalltown, Marshall County, Iowa, and is drawn from a 
survey by Professor Frank H. Culley, landscape architect. 
Problem 
If the student has time he should first redraw the plan of the 
Marshalltown court-house square as here shown. 
The next step must be to survey the nearest court-house square 
and present the findings in the form of a drawing similar to that 
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