This summer marked a significant milestone for the UO Pacific Northwest Field School program as they celebrated their 30th anniversary year with an immersive three-week residency at Elk Rock Garden.
The garden’s 1916 manor house, which has been used as office space for decades, temporarily morphed into a bustling dormitory/summer camp, with cots, students, and faculty filling every available room.
Approximately 15 students per week participated in the program, alongside skilled instructors with backgrounds in woodworking, masonry, stained glass restoration, heritage documentation, landscape design, and more!
Some students registered for a single week, while others remained onsite for multiple weeks, creating a truly dynamic learning environment.
The program operated on a rigorous schedule, beginning with breakfast at 7 AM, followed by intensive work sessions from 8 AM to 5 PM, with Program Assistant Paras Bajaj and Program Coordinator Marcel Brousseau assuring that all work went smoothly.
Three hearty meals per day were prepared by camp cook Daisy, an absolute trooper who kept everyone well-fed and hydrated throughout the program.
Evenings brought the group together in Elk Rock Garden’s chapel for lectures covering topics ranging from pursuing National Register listings to Elk Rock Garden history.
Master Craftspeople Share Their Expertise
Field School Director Allison Geary assembled an impressive roster of specialists, each of whom led hands-on workshops in their areas of expertise:
Stained Glass Restoration was led by David Schlicker of David Schlicker Stained Glass Studio, who has spent over 40 years creating and restoring windows for homes, businesses, and churches throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond. Under his guidance, students completely rebuilt a damaged leaded glass window and stabilized the leading in our back door and chapel windows.
Wood Repair workshops were conducted by Al Williams, whose 32-year career began in 1984 at Grand Teton National Park. As former Principal Preservation Specialist and Trainer at the National Park Service’s Western Center for Historic Preservation, Al brought decades of experience in historic window and door construction, millwork replication, and building assessment to Elk Rock Garden. His expertise proved invaluable as students repaired our front entry columns and chapel windows, and refinished our front and back entry doors, including adjacent wooden screen doors.
Masonry Repair was taught by Alan Ash of Alan Ash Stone Masonry, who has been teaching hands-on masonry courses for decades. With experience on well over 100 National Register buildings and historic sites since starting his business in 1983, Alan guided Field School students through the complete rebuilding of a failed stone retaining wall along our cliff walk.
Woodworking instruction came from Field School director Allison Geary, who helped students create a specialized jig to facilitate repair of the property’s woven mahogany radiator covers.
Cultural Landscape Management was taught by Vida Germano, Historic Structures and Cultural Landscapes Program Manager for the National Park Service’s Pacific West Region, and Laurie Matthews, FASLA, a nationally recognized expert in cultural landscapes and preservation planning. Together, they led pruning workshops and cultural landscape sessions that resulted in extensive pruning of shrubs and vines throughout the property and restoration of waterflow in The Cascades, where our stream had long been blocked by excessive sediment buildup.
Heritage Documentation Photography workshops were conducted by Harley Cowan, a Portland-based photographer and architect whose work can be found in the Historic American Buildings Survey collection in the Library of Congress. His expertise in large format photography provided students with essential skills in architectural documentation.
Building Envelope Assessment was taught by Rebecca Wong, an architectural historian and historic preservation specialist with extensive experience in facade systems and materials conservation. Her workshops provided students with an introduction to evaluating and maintaining historic building systems.
Remarkable Results
The Field School program yielded an impressive array of completed projects that will benefit Elk Rock Garden for years to come. Students successfully repaired and rebuilt wooden entry columns and multiple windows and doors, replaced and reinforced leading in failing leaded glass windows, created new woven mahogany panels for six radiator doors, completely rebuilt a collapsed stone retaining wall, and restored good health to our stream and shrubs. Additionally, a comprehensive building envelope assessment will help guide future preservation efforts.
Life in a Living Laboratory
For the first time in many years, the main residence at Elk Rock Garden was abuzz with people living beneath its roof (although Field School participants did all have to share a single shower!)
Despite limited plumbing, the property proved to be an ideal setting for hands-on preservation education, with garden visitors delighting in watching the students work and eagerly asking questions.
Participants included undergraduate and graduate students from the University of Oregon and other universities, as well as working professionals seeking continuing education opportunities.
Program staff conducted extensive safety training before students tackled their projects, keeping everyone safe and injury-free throughout the entire three weeks.
Despite some warm weather during the first week, the program participants were fortunate to avoid any truly extreme weather conditions.
Students enjoyed Saturdays and Sundays off, along with Wednesday field trips that included visits to several historic African American churches in Portland.
Evening entertainment came courtesy of mason Alan Ash, who brought his mandolin to the garden and played music on our patio under the stars while students made s’mores and socialized.
Elk Rock Garden staff fully embraced the Field School program, with Executive Director Stephanie Brown and Lead Gardener Nico Swartz pitching in on restoration work, while Volunteer Coordinator Drew Beard interviewed students and helped document the experience through photos and video. Our resident historian, Eileen Fitzsimons, was also on hand to share Elk Rock Garden history and an impressive assortment of historic photographs.
The Field School program garnered significant media attention, with both KGW and KPTV visiting the garden to document students and instructors at work, showcasing this unique educational opportunity to the broader community.
During the final week of the program, Elk Rock Garden hosted two open houses, inviting garden visitors, neighbors, and donors to learn about the different projects first-hand and see completed restoration work for themselves. These events provided an opportunity for the community to connect with the students and instructors while celebrating the students’ achievements.
Elk Rock Garden was delighted to offer learning opportunities – and a temporary home – to these wonderful students and instructors. It was incredibly rewarding to see so many necessary repairs completed, while also providing opportunities for educational experiences.
Making It All Possible
The success of this ambitious program was made possible in part through generous financial support from the Oregon Community Foundation, whose grant covered the cost of most of our building materials, and by our partnership with the UO Pacific Northwest Field School team, whose kindness, generosity, and collaborative spirit made working with them an absolute joy! We would welcome them back, with open arms, anytime!
Looking Forward
The success of the UO Pacific Northwest Field School program at Elk Rock Garden is a testament to the power of experiential learning. By combining rigorous academic instruction with hands-on application, the program helped train a new generation of preservation professionals while caring for one of our region’s most treasured cultural landscapes.
Our staff and board are incredibly grateful to have hosted this remarkable program and welcome future educational partnerships. We invite discussions with other college-level programs in horticulture, landscape architecture, garden design, architectural history, climate resilience planning, hydrology and related fields to see what sorts of collaboration might be possible.
This article was originally published by our partners at Elk Rock Garden here. It was written by Stephanie Brown, the Executive Director of Elk Rock Garden, which is located at 11800 S. Military Lane, Portland, Oregon 97219.
