Sweet Auburn: The Magazine of the Friends A Landscape of Remembrance and Reflection | Page 16

to its fullest potential. Focusing on native plantings was
still uncommon in landscape design at the time, and Mount
Auburn became an early adopter of what has since become
an important part of ecologically sustainable horticulture
practices. As Craig recalls, “In those days there weren’t a lot
of native plants on the market. I was ready to give up and
say, maybe we should use something else...it might not be
exactly native, but we can find a workaround. But Claude was
totally determined to find the native. Looking back on it, he
was right. There was something about using the native plants
that looked like it had been there forever, and looked like it
belonged.” Consecration Dell’s restoration, which our staff has
spent over two decades expanding upon in stages, is now one
of the most dramatic examples of how the master plan was
realized at Mount Auburn.
Long after the master plan’s completion, Craig (pictured
left with Dave Barnett in 2008 and below with Dennis Collins
in 2019) has remained deeply involved here, allowing him to
witness the many changes take effect across the Cemetery.
Along with the team at Halvorson Design Partnership, he
has been part of numerous follow-up projects implementing
more of the plan’s recommendations, including the interment
space at Birch Gardens, the landscape outside of Bigelow
Chapel, and the 2018 redesign of Asa Gray Garden. Even
after officially retiring from his role as Founding Principal of
the firm, he has taken an active role in the planting process
in addition to the design work, a change that he has found
extremely gratifying: “I wouldn’t have been out there directing
plantings, doing planting at that time, it was more of an
overview. Now it’s getting more into the detail and trying to
fit it into the theory.” He has enjoyed seeing how deeply our
longtime staff members have internalized the master plan:
“They actually know it better than me in a lot of ways!”
Looking ahead to our next major project, Indian Ridge,
Craig has consulted with Pat Cullina and our Horticultural
Curator Dennis Collins on the landscape design. “I love the
idea of doing Indian Ridge....It’s going on the historic theme,
but it’s editing the landscape. I think doing that and doing it
properly to open up views, and thinking about how it connects
better to Auburn Lake and on the other side, Halcyon...it’s
a part of the whole experience around this area....I think it’s
going to make a huge difference in the landscape.”
As Craig continues to return for each of these projects,
one of the most meaningful aspects—both for him and for
everyone at Mount Auburn—is getting to see how his original
work, which began thirty years ago, has come to life across
the Cemetery. “I think of all the master plans we’ve done over
time, this is the one that I’m probably most proud of at this
point,” he says. “For me, what’s much more rewarding than the
master plan is seeing it happen....It’s not a theory anymore.
It’s coming into reality.”
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