(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Public Lands: The John A. Finch Arboretum (photo diary) [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-11-18 For thousands of years, many of the ancient civilizations created special gardens where they planted exotic trees. The English word arboretum, however, is fairly recent: the prolific English gardener and writer John Claudius Loudon (1783-1843) is generally credited for introducing the word arboretum in an article in The Gardner’s Magazine in 1833. Arboretum came into English with the meaning of “tree-garden, place where trees or shrubs are cultivated.” It is from the Latin arboretum meaning “a place grown with trees.” Arboretum is formed from arbor meaning “tree” with the suffix -ettum which is used form the names of gardens and woods. The John A. Finch Arboretum is located in southwest Spokane on 65 acres of wooded hills. In 1907, the Spokane Board of Park Commissioners marked off a mile-long strip along Garden Springs Creek for a future garden space. In 1912, with the help of John A. Finch, a wealthy mining investor, the rest of the land for the arboretum was purchased. In the 1940s, John Duncan, the Park Superintendent, designed the planting plans and planting the 23 species in the arboretum began in earnest in 1949. Today the collection of trees and shrubs includes natives of the inland northwest and plants from many parts of the world. They were selected as educationally useful, scientifically important, and aesthetically attractive. Who was John Finch? Born in England, John Finch came to America when he was a boy and eventually settled in Spokane where he partnered with Amasa B. Campbell, who became his neighbor in Browne's Addition. Together, Finch and Campbell invested heavily in Coeur d'Alene mining operations and developed the Gem, Standard, and Hecla Silver Mines. Finch was also president of many businesses including the White and Bender Company, Coeur d'Alene Hardware Company, Blalock Fruit Company, and the National Lumber and Box Company. He was elected to the Idaho State Senate in 1891. John Finch died in 1915, leaving 60% of his fortune to his wife and 40% to charity and civic enterprises. The Master Plan The Woodland Center The Woodland Center contains a large conference room, restrooms, and several displays. Other Features More Finch Arboretum Public Lands: Flowers in an arboretum garden (photo diary) Finch Arboretum: The creek (photo diary) Finch Arboretum: Some flowers (photo diary) Public Lands: Finch Arboretum garden (photo diary) Public Lands: A White Willow Tree (photo diary) Public Lands: Trees along the creek (photo diary) Public Lands: Why are trees important? [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/11/18/2206235/-Public-Lands-The-John-A-Finch-Arboretum-photo-diary?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/