UGA Alum Returns to Talk Value and Preservation of Historic Landscapes

From undergrads to grandparents, a group of 45 historic preservation enthusiasts gathered in the University of Georgia Chapel on Friday, to hear the insights and accomplishments of UGA alum and landscape preservation expert Suzanne Turner. Aided by a slideshow of historical landscapes, Turner spoke of her experiences as well as her hopes for the future of historic preservation.

Professor emeriti of Louisiana State University, Turner started her career in the UGA Landscape Architecture school after graduating from Emory University in Atlanta.
“I spent a lot of time complaining that the professors weren’t doing what they ought to, to preserve the historic landscapes that I felt were quickly disappearing,” Turner said.

After graduating from UGA she quickly turned her concern into action, doing everything from research and teaching to administration. Currently, Turner is working through her own firm, Suzanne Turner Associates and has made many successful contributions to preserving landscapes in both a public and private capacity.

Throughout her work and research, Turner has always put a lot of attention on her passion for preserving the disappearing landscapes, and interpreting the stories these landscapes provide. “Energy should be put on the story of the people and their landscapes,” said Turner.

One experience Turner specifically noted was her work in northern Louisiana along the Cane River. She showed a slide of a beautiful Creole-style garden she encountered in her years of research of the area. She pointed out the unique parterre made up of wine bottles lining the garden. “We in Louisiana are very resourceful,” she said.

Turner also voiced her concerns about the disappearance of such rural landscapes as the one she studied along the Cane River. “I’m not sure if the American public has land preservation on its radar. Land has become such a commodity instead of a sacred trust.” Turner said.

Continuing to elaborate on her concerns, she shifts the focus to the affects of the 2005 natural disaster, Hurricane Katrina, which ravaged the Gulf Coast and Greater New Orleans Area. In line with her passion for maintaining the relationship between people and their landscapes, Turner blamed Katrina for “the loss of the very fabric which held [the people] and the landscape together.” In addition to the effects on the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, some of New Orleans’ historical landscapes, like City Park also suffered greatly.

The park, built in 1854, has been a model of a historic landscape. Ironically, the year before the storm, plans had been drawn to remodel and modernize the park. Turner described the plans as including, “one of everything that is already passé. The history of the park was not in the scope.”
While Katrina succeeded in decimating the remodeling from moving forwards, it also succeeded in destroying archives, trees, and gardens. And although FEMA decided to give the park $42 million, Turner said the actual possibility of receiving the money is bleak. With the inability to restore some of the landscape, Turner touches on personal feelings of disappointment in, “knowing some of it is already heading for the wrecking ball.”

Despite these disillusions, Turner also recognizes positive measures being taken to preserve historic landscapes. One such measure is a project of Turner’s, which she calls her love.
The project is the restoration and research of the lands surrounding the historic Magnolia Plantation located in St. Francisville, Louisiana. Her work with the plantation represents the aspects of the industry she is so passionate about: uniting and preserving the stories of the land and the people who are tied to it. Turner said she has found the opportunity to do this with the discovery of a garden diary written by Martha Turnbull, the original mistress of the plantation. “The real story is what happened in the greenhouse, where for 60 years Martha recorded on a daily basis what happened in her garden,” said Turner.

While Turner has been working on the project for years, she jokes that she is finally ready to finish it. “I rarely finish a project on time,” said Turner. “I call it incubation, not procrastination. That’s something I learned here.”

Though challenges face the industry, Turner said she is optimistic about the future. She notes the shifts in American life as hurdles, but calls on her fellow landscape preservation professionals to be the change they want to see. Turner said, “Our challenge as professionals is to be the agents of landscape.”