Chestnut Hill Conservancy’s Discovering: Pastorius Park

The Discovering series, one of the Chestnut Hill Conservancy’s signature public programs, spotlights the area’s rich architecture, history, and natural beauty through guided tours and lectures, offering Conservancy members discounted tickets.
Conservancy members enjoy discounted tickets and exclusive access to special events, fostering deeper connections throughout the Wissahickon watershed. Join today to receive program discounts and help preserve the stories and spaces that define our community.
Wednesday, February 11, 2026
Virtual, via Zoom | 7:00–8:30 PM
Registration: $20 for conservancy members | $25 for non-members
Advance registration is required.
Click Here to Register.
Join the Chestnut Hill Conservancy for a two-part edition of Discovering focused on Pastorius Park. The series opens with a virtual lecture on Wednesday, February 11, exploring a century of design, stewardship, and renewal, followed by a moderated Q&A.
Nestled in the heart of Chestnut Hill, in Northwest Philadelphia, Pastorius Park is far more than a neighborhood green. Designed and constructed during the New Deal era and shaped by earlier Olmsted Brothers planning efforts, the park reflects a long arc of civic vision, community advocacy, and evolving stewardship. Join landscape historian Rob Fleming, ASLA, and park steward James McNabb for a richly illustrated lecture exploring newly compiled research from their forthcoming Historic American Landscapes Survey (HALS) submission.
Drawing from historic drawings, rare archival photographs, and contemporary documentation, the talk traces the park’s origins as an unrealized traffic circle, its transformation under WPA designers such as Frederick W. Peck and Stephen Ford, and the significant restoration and ecological renewal efforts led by the Friends of Pastorius Park from 1987 to the present. The program will also preview new GIS-based mapping and tree inventory work completed in partnership with the Morris Arboretum.
This session will conclude with Q&A. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of Pastorius Park as a rare example of an intact 1930s civic landscape that now serves as a Level I accredited arboretum and a model for community-driven stewardship.