Marian Coffin at 150: Celebrating the Legacy of a Pioneer in Landscape Architecture

Dr. Jules Bruck, FASLA, PLA, is Dean of the College of Environment and Design at the University of Georgia. A registered landscape architect, educator, and academic leader, she has built nationally recognized programs that advance design excellence, interdisciplinary collaboration, and student success. Prior to joining UGA, she served as Director of the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning at the University of Florida and was Founding Director of the University of Delaware Landscape Architecture Program, where she launched the award-winning Coastal Resilience Design Studio. 

Her work integrates landscape architecture, planting design, ecological design, and nature-based infrastructure to address complex environmental challenges through research, practice, and education. Dr. Bruck is co-author, with Erin Fogarty, of Marian Coffin Gardens at Gibraltar, which highlights her legacy. Dr. Bruck was elected to the Council of Fellows of the American Society of Landscape Architects in 2024.

Marian Coffin's influence on the University of Delaware extends far beyond her design of the historic campus landscape. This presentation explores Coffin's vision for the University of Delaware campus, how her work continues to shape the university's identity and sense of place, and how her legacy has inspired a new generation of landscape architects through the university's landscape architecture program. Reflecting on the program's first ten years, the presentation considers how thoughtful design and the lasting impact of educating future practitioners.

George Coombs is the director of horticulture at Mt. Cuba Center, where he guides the care and development of one of the preeminent native plant gardens in America. To date, his efforts have focused on making Mt. Cuba’s gardens more accessible to a growing number of guests and ensuring the long-term resilience of the garden. Prior to his current role, George managed Mt. Cuba’s trial program, publishing several research reports and helped bring new cultivars of native plants to market.

Mt. Cuba has implemented thoughtful enhancements to a historic garden to enhance accessibility. The major themes discussed will include design, construction management, plant selection, and accessibility features.

Stuart Lilie graduated from the College of William and Mary. He worked for Colonial Williamsburg and began his own historic saddlery company. Since 20111, Stuart has led the Public History department at Fort Ticonderoga, which reaches nearly 70,000 visitors annually through daily programs and events. He oversees all aspects of the visitor experience, including living history programs and events, historic trades, heritage breeds, horticulture, museum education, school outreach, and maritime programs. Stuart Lilie leads the cultivation and interpretation of Marian Coffin's 1920 King's Garden at Fort Ticonderoga.

Join Fort Ticonderoga's Vice President of Public History, Stuart Lilie, to explore the 1920 plan of the King's Garden at Fort Ticonderoga. Examine how Marian Cruger Coffin reshaped this garden using existing walls, paths and other hardscape. Delve into Coffin's design, as it served the goals of Sarah Gibbs Thompson Pell, for an inviting garden enjoyed from the family summer home. See how Marian Coffin removed the previous English Cottage style for a new decade and how the experience of the Great War of 1914-1918 informed aspects of the design. Track the seasonal progression of the King's Garden design and Coffin's plant selection for a northern climate.

As a Fellow in the Longwood Graduate Program (UD, 1997), Iris wrote “The Historic Landscape at Gibraltar – A Proposal for its Preservation.” Her research has served as a resource for Gibraltar’s restoration and maintenance, and for other scholars’ work on Marian Coffin and her legacy.  

During her career in historic landscape preservation, land conservation and non-profit management, Iris was Director of Education and Visitor Services at historic Longwood Gardens (PA) and Bok Tower Gardens (FL), prior to serving as Executive Director of the National Association for Olmsted Parks in Washington, DC. There, she led preservation, research and advocacy work to promote the national landscape design and planning legacy of the Olmsted firm. As Executive Director of Willowsford Conservancy, Iris led the start-up of a 2,000-acre land conservancy in northern Virginia to a vibrant non-profit conservation, recreation and education organization. Currently, Iris is an executive in Plymouth Meeting, PA.  Iris holds MS degrees from the University of Delaware, and Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany.

In this presentation, Iris will explore Marian Coffin’s pioneering role as one of the first female landscape architects in the United States. Renowned for her innovative style, artistic vision, and functional designs, Coffin helped transform American garden architecture and design.

Gibraltar, her celebrated commission in Wilmington, Delaware, serves as a vivid example of Coffin’s design philosophy. Through Gibraltar, Iris will demonstrate Coffin’s simple yet sophisticated style, her design techniques, deep horticultural knowledge, and skillful client collaborations. 

With her mastery of symmetry and proportion, the inclusion of dramatic architectural elements, and balance of formal and naturalist elements, Coffin created notable public and private works that have left a lasting impact on American landscape architecture and design. 

Marian Coffin’s legacy continues to inspire professionals today, showing the importance of creativity, purpose and determination in overcoming gender barriers in the field. 

Lauren Kope serves as Director of the University of Delaware Botanic Gardens (UDBG), where she oversees operations and strategic initiatives that connect the University and broader community with the Gardens' living collections. In this role, she works to advance UDBG as a resource for education and public engagement while fostering an appreciation for the beauty, value, and impact of plants. Lauren earned her B.S. in Agricultural Science from Virginia Tech and M.B.A. from the University of Delaware. She is a graduate of the Longwood Gardens Professional Horticulture Program and has held leadership positions in both public and private horticulture.

The Townsend East Lawn and Garden project transformed an existing parking lot into a new central green space, complete with a custom-designed comfort station, a range of gathering spaces, an expanded, shaded Creamery plaza, wildlife-friendly lighting, an outdoor classroom, signage and site furnishings. This space is designed to create a central focal point and sense of arrival at the heart of UDBG's existing garden collections. This new campus landscape features over thirty new shade trees and many new garden collections designed to educate and inspire students and visitors alike. The garden is designed for four seasons of interest and structured around woody species UDBG sought to add to its teaching collection. 

Spatially, the project plan is rooted in the idea that south campus should have a significant central green space and relate to Marian Coffin's design of The Green for at main campus. Drawing inspiration from her arrangement of space and using her designs as precedent, the project team created a beautiful new space to be enjoyed by all. 

UDBG director Lauren Kope and project landscape architects Rosa Mannion and Erin Ramsden from NV5 will overview the site's context within south campus and UDBG, the design process, inspiration, and planting design.

Stuart Lilie graduated from the College of William and Mary. He worked for Colonial Williamsburg and began his own historic saddlery company. Since 20111, Stuart has led the Public History department at Fort Ticonderoga, which reaches nearly 70,000 visitors annually through daily programs and events. He oversees all aspects of the visitor experience, including living history programs and events, historic trades, heritage breeds, horticulture, museum education, school outreach, and maritime programs. Stuart Lilie leads the cultivation and interpretation of Marian Coffin's 1920 King's Garden at Fort Ticonderoga.

Join Fort Ticonderoga's Vice President of Public History, Stuart Lilie, to explore the 1920 plan of the King's Garden at Fort Ticonderoga. Examine how Marian Cruger Coffin reshaped this garden using existing walls, paths and other hardscape. Delve into Coffin's design, as it served the goals of Sarah Gibbs Thompson Pell, for an inviting garden enjoyed from the family summer home. See how Marian Coffin removed the previous English Cottage style for a new decade and how the experience of the Great War of 1914-1918 informed aspects of the design. Track the seasonal progression of the King's Garden design and Coffin's plant selection for a northern climate.

Rosa leads the landscape architecture practice out of NV5’s Philadelphia office. The multi-disciplinary studio focuses on work in the public realm, with emphasis on higher education, public parks, greenways, trails, streets, schoolyards, and green stormwater infrastructure. Rosa is passionate about design within the public realm and strives to create high-quality public amenities for all communities. She received a master’s in landscape architecture from the University of Pennsylvania in 2006.

The Townsend East Lawn and Garden project transformed an existing parking lot into a new central green space, complete with a custom-designed comfort station, a range of gathering spaces, an expanded, shaded Creamery plaza, wildlife-friendly lighting, an outdoor classroom, signage and site furnishings. This space is designed to create a central focal point and sense of arrival at the heart of UDBG's existing garden collections. This new campus landscape features over thirty new shade trees and many new garden collections designed to educate and inspire students and visitors alike. The garden is designed for four seasons of interest and structured around woody species UDBG sought to add to its teaching collection. 

Spatially, the project plan is rooted in the idea that south campus should have a significant central green space and relate to Marian Coffin's design of The Green for at main campus. Drawing inspiration from her arrangement of space and using her designs as precedent, the project team created a beautiful new space to be enjoyed by all. 

UDBG director Lauren Kope and project landscape architects Rosa Mannion and Erin Ramsden from NV5 will overview the site's context within south campus and UDBG, the design process, inspiration, and planting design.

Erin is a professional landscape architect and educator with diverse professional experience in public landscape design, public horticulture, green stormwater infrastructure research, museum exhibit construction, and sustainability/energy efficiency. She has worked in public gardens across the country, from Chicago to Seattle, expanding her professional experience to landscape architecture in Philadelphia. Her work in public horticulture deeply informs her approach to design, centering plant selection and garden composition as integral to the creation of resilient, ecological, and beautiful spaces. Witnessing the value nature provides for city dwellers, Erin is dedicated to developing thoughtful, contextual, and ecologically focused urban designs. 

The Townsend East Lawn and Garden project transformed an existing parking lot into a new central green space, complete with a custom-designed comfort station, a range of gathering spaces, an expanded, shaded Creamery plaza, wildlife-friendly lighting, an outdoor classroom, signage and site furnishings. This space is designed to create a central focal point and sense of arrival at the heart of UDBG's existing garden collections. This new campus landscape features over thirty new shade trees and many new garden collections designed to educate and inspire students and visitors alike. The garden is designed for four seasons of interest and structured around woody species UDBG sought to add to its teaching collection. 

Spatially, the project plan is rooted in the idea that south campus should have a significant central green space and relate to Marian Coffin's design of The Green for at main campus. Drawing inspiration from her arrangement of space and using her designs as precedent, the project team created a beautiful new space to be enjoyed by all. 

UDBG director Lauren Kope and project landscape architects Rosa Mannion and Erin Ramsden from NV5 will overview the site's context within south campus and UDBG, the design process, inspiration, and planting design.

Josh has been with the University of Delaware for nine years, first as a Grounds Manager before being promoted to Director of Landscape Services, He is responsible for all landscape and grounds services, athletic field maintenance and waste and recycling services. He also serves as campus Landscape Architect.

More than a century after Marian Coffin helped shape the University of Delaware campus, her vision continues to influence how its landscapes evolve. This presentation explores the ongoing effort to enhance the campus while respecting and preserving Coffin's original design