(SNP035) Clarence Somers interviewed by Dorothy Noble Smith and Jim Cotter, transcribed by Jeanette Shapiro

Authors

Clarence O. Somers

Files

Interviewee

Somers, Clarence O.

Identifier

SNP035

Format

1 audio file (running time: 0:36:37)

Interview Number

SNP-35

Location of Interview

The home of Mr. and Mrs. Somers.

Date of Interview

9-11-1976

Description

Records an interview with Clarence Somers, who planted and maintained the Judd Gardens at Skyland Resort from 1922 to 1945. Judd Gardens were named for George and Marianna Judd of Washington, DC, who owned several lots and cabins at Skyland, including the land where the gardens were laid out in 1910. Mrs. Judd was allowed to remain at Skyland after the property was incorporated into Shenandoah National Park in 1936, until her death in 1958. The gardens were abandoned by order of the National Park Service in 1945. The interview consists chiefly of comparisons of plants and trees found at during a recent botanical survey of the site of the gardens, conducted by Jim Cotter of the National Park Service, with Mr. Somers' recollection of the garden plantings through 1945. Comments by a woman identified only as Mrs. Somers, (believed to be Beulah V. Somers, (née Sours)), occur throughout the interview, as do references to George F. Pollock, owner of Skyland Resort.

Rights

The copyright interests in this collection have been transferred to the James Madison University Special Collections Library. For more information, contact the Special Collections Library Reference Desk (library-special@jmu.edu).

Personal Names

Somers, Clarence O., (Clarence Otis), 1900-1986, Interviews; Somers, Beulah V., 1902-1987, Interviews; Judd, George H. (George Herbert), 1860-1928; Judd, Marianna, d.1958; Pollock, George Freeman, 1869-1949 – Anecdotes.

Family Names

Summers family; Judd family

Subjects

Gardens -- Virginia -- History; Gardens -- Virginia -- Skyland

Place Names

Judd Gardens (Skyland (Va.) – History; Skyland (Va.) – History; Skyline Drive (Va.) – History; Page County (Va.) – History; Shenandoah National Park (Va.) -- History, Local.

Interviewer

Smith, Dorothy Noble, 1915-1999; Cotter, Jim

Transcriber

Shapiro, Jeanette

Collection Title

Shenandoah National Park oral history collection

Collection Number

SdArch SNP

Recommended Citation

Clarence O. Somers interviewed by Dorothy Noble Smith and Jim Cotter, September 11, 1976, SdArch SNP-35, Shenandoah National Park Oral History Collection, 1964-1999, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University

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