Around the Horticulture Center

Bike and Walking Friendly

2 miles Round Trip

Loading map...

Built in 1979 on the site of the former Horticultural Hall and 1876 Centennial Exposition building, the Horticulture Center is a modern exhibition hall and greenhouse in West Fairmount Park. Hours: 8am-6pm, April-October; 8am-5pm, November-March.

Smith Memorial Arch

(1897 – 1912)

by Various Artists

Avenue of the Republic, West Fairmount Park

The Smith Memorial Arch was initiated by Richard Smith, a wealthy Philadelphian who bequeathed a half million dollars to build a monument to Pennsylvania’s naval and military heroes of the Civil War.

Pegasus

(1863)

by Vincenz Bildhauer Pilz (1816-1896)

Memorial Hall Front Entrance, 4231 Avenue of the Republic, West Fairmount Park

Originally designed for an opera house in Vienna, these two winged horses and their muses were purchased by a Philadelphia businessman and installed at Memorial Hall for the 1876 Centennial Exposition. 

Major General George Gordon Meade

(1887)

by Alexander Milne Calder (1846 - 1923)

Lansdowne Drive north of Memorial Hall, West Fairmount Park

A memorial in Fairmount Park to General Meade, best known for defeating General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg.

Pavilion in the Trees

(1993)

by Martin Puryear (b. 1941)

Lansdowne Glen, Horticulture Center grounds, off North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park

A sixty-foot walkway leads across a natural basin to an observation platform – a square deck covered by a latticed canopy – that rises twenty-four feet above the ground.

Night

(1872)

by Edward Stauch (1830 - ?)

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

This allegorical bronze cast depicts descending nightfall as a shrouded woman. It was the first gift to the Fairmount Park Art Association (now the Association for Public Art).

Seaweed Girl Fountain

(1920)

by Beatrice Fenton (1887 - 1983)

Greenhouse at the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

Beatrice Fenton was a Philadelphia sculptor known for her fanciful fountains with realistic renderings of youths amongst plant forms.

The Wrestlers

(3rd century BCE, cast c. 1885)

by Artist Unknown

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

This sculpture is based on the 3rd century BCE Greek original, which was lost in antiquity. The men are engaged in the Greek sport pankration.

Schiller

(1885)

by Heinrich Carl Johann Manger (1833 - 1891)

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

“Schiller” was commissioned by the Canstatter Volksfest-Verein, and is a companion piece to “Goethe” also located on the Horticulture Center grounds.

Sundial

(1903)

by Alexander Stirling Calder (1870 - 1945)

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

An Art Nouveau-style bronze sundial atop a sculpted limestone base representing the four seasons. Spring holds a rose; Summer carries poppies; Autumn wears grapes in her hair; and Winter has a pine branch.

Goethe

(1890)

by Heinrich Carl Johann Manger (1833 - 1891)

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

“Goethe” was commissioned by the Canstatter Volksfest-Verein, and is a companion piece to “Schiller” also located on the Horticulture Center grounds.

The Reverend Dr. John Witherspoon

(1876)

by Joseph A. Bailly (1825 - 1883)

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

A statue erected for the 1876 Centennial Exhibition of Rev. Dr. John Witherspoon, who signed the Declaration of Independence and was the only active clergyman in the Continental Congress.

Rebecca at the Well

(1908)

by John J. Boyle (1851 - 1917)

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

Once a water fountain, Rebecca at the Well depicts a biblical story from the Book of Genesis, in which Rebecca offers water to a man and his camel.

Franz Schubert

(1891)

by Henry Baerer (1837 - 1908)

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

This bronze monument, which honors an important Austrian composer was awarded to the United German Singers of Philadelphia at the 16th National Saengerfest.

Joseph Haydn

(1906)

by Idusch & Son

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

This bronze monument, which honors an important Austrian composer was awarded to the United German Singers of Philadelphia at the 21st National Saengerfest.

Giuseppe Verdi

(1907)

by Ettore Ferrari (1845 - 1931)

Horticulture Center grounds (Belmont Avenue and North Horticultural Drive, West Fairmount Park)

A gift of the Italian Colony of Philadelphia in 1907, this was the second monument given by Italian-Americans to the City.