Haverford College was founded in 1833 by Welsh Quakers.

The following year William Carvill, an English gardener, was hired to transform the tilled fields, woodlots, and pastures into a campus landscape. Trees were planted to frame and complement open spaces, border the lanes in alleés and form grouped circles on open lawns, a reflection of the English landscape tradition of Sir Humphrey Repton. Today the pastoral landscape includes several original oaks on Founders Green.

In 1901 a group of students and alumni formed the Campus Club to help preserve the campus landscape after discovering the original landscape drawing. Their work eventually led to the founding of the Haverford College Campus Arboretum Association (now the Haverford College Arboretum Association) in 1974, which continues to perpetuate the landscape’s original design.

The types of services that are provided by Arboretum and Grounds division of Facilities Management include:

• • Educational programs, e.g., nature walks, lectures, talks, newsletters
  • Advice on horticultural matters
  • Maintain tree data base and label trees
  • Routine care of lawns, trees, roads, walks, and athletic fields
• • Establishment and maintenance of flower and shrub beds
  • Support of outdoor events
  • Snow removal
  • Repair, maintenance and purchasing of vehicles and equipment

Download our Strategic Plan to learn more.