REPORT BY THE NATIONAL COMMISSION OF FINE ARTS ON 

 THE BOTANIC GARDEN SITUATION IN THE DISTRICT OF 

 COLUMBIA. 



United States Senate, 



Committee on the Library, 



May IS, 19W. 

 The Chairman of the Commission oe Fine Arts. 



Dear Sir : Senate resolution 165, referred to this committee August 

 23, 1919, directs it to " consider and report to the Senate plans for 

 the location and development in or near the District of Columbia of 

 a botanic garden of a size. and excellence comparable with the best 

 existing botanic gardens." It would be of great assistance to the 

 committee if it were provided with a comprehensive report as to 

 what the Commission of Fine Arts regards as the best solution of 

 the botanic garden problem, including a review of data available for 

 the botanic garden itself, and what area in the vicinity of the Capi- 

 tol may be had at a minimum or no expense for a Capitol flower gar- 

 den, and such facts and figures as will assist the committee in the con- 

 sideration of this subject. 

 Yours, very truly, 



Frank B. Brandegee, 



Chairman. 



Commission of Fine Arts, 



Washington, May 18, 1920. 

 Sir : In your letter of May 7 last you ask the Commission of Fine 

 Arts for a comprehensive report on the botanic garden problem in 

 conformity with Senate resolution 165, referred to the Committee on 

 the Library August 23, 1919. You call for a discussion of sites 

 within the District of Columbia available for the Botanic Garden 

 itself, and ask what area in the vicinity of the Capitol may be had 

 for a Congress flower garden, together with such facts and figures as 

 will assist your committee in its consideration of this subject. The 

 commission herewith places before you the information desired by 

 you. 



STATEMENT of the problems. 



For reasons that will appear, the Botanic Garden must be removed 

 from its present location. Congress, when it located the Grant Me- 

 morial in the garden area, forced the garden out. Such was the in- 

 tention of Congress. The action was entirely logical. That space 

 was designed by President Washington and Maj. L'Enfant as an 



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