Get ready for Fall! 

Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania is a historic public garden and educational institution. It promotes an understanding of the relationship between plants, people and place through programs that integrate science, art and the humanities. Its history began in 1887 as Compton, the summer home of John and Lydia Morris, brother and sister. The I.P. Morris Company, an iron-manufacturing firm founded by their father and later run by John Morris, was a source of family wealth.

John and Lydia traveled widely in America, Asia, and Europe bringing ideas, artwork, crafts and plants back to Compton. They shared a love of history and art and established a tradition of placing sculpture in the garden that continues today. The Morrises were active in civic affairs and preservation and believed in the power of education. They laid plans for a school and laboratory at Compton devoted to horticulture and botany. Compton became the Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania in 1932. Listed on The National Register of Historic Places, it is an interdisciplinary resource center for the University, and is recognized as the official arboretum of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Science, art, and humanities are pursued through a variety of research, teaching, and outreach programs that link the Arboretum to a worldwide effort to nurture the earth’s forests, fields and landscapes.

There will be a guided tour 2-3 pm, though you can view the Gardens before or after on your own. You can also visit local restaurants in Chestnut Hill for lunch or dinner before or after the event with other Cornellians. Admissions is complementary to CCGP for this special day, so take advantage of the full day pass to visit and explore. See the Morris Arboretum’s page for all the things you can see and do, as well as a map of the arboretum.

Date: Saturday, October 12, 2019
Time: We’ll meet at the Visitor Center at 2:00 p.m.
Location: 100 E. Northwestern Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19118
Cost: This is a free event, but you must let us know you’re coming because we will provide a list of all attendees to the gate staff, for free admission.  Deadline to register is October 10, 2019.