Emmet Layton Papers

Collection

Identifier: WUA-03-wua00212

Staff Only

The collection primarily includes materials related to Emmet Layton’s professional work as a landscape architect in St. Louis, Missouri; his involvement in the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA); and his tenure as landscape architect at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. Of particular interest are files related to the planning and construction of the Coffrin Arboretum at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, for which Layton was a consultant, as well as materials from courses on city planning and landscape architecture taught by Layton at Washington University’s School of Architecture.

The collection also includes articles and speeches by Emmet Layton; materials related to the work of Ruth Layton, Emmet Layton’s first wife and business partner; and a small amount of personal correspondence and related items.

In most cases, the file names created by Layton have been preserved.

Dates

Creation: 1923-1984

Conditions Governing Access

Open

Conditions Governing Use

Users of the collection must read and agree to abide by the rules and procedures set forth in the Materials Use Policies.

Providing access to materials does not constitute permission to publish or otherwise authorize use. All publication not covered by fair use or other exceptions is restricted to those who have permission of the copyright holder, which may or may not be Washington University.

If you wish to publish or license Special Collections materials, please contact Special Collections to inquire about copyright status at (314) 935-5495 or spec@wumail.wustl.edu. (Publish means quotation in whole or in part in seminar or term papers, theses or dissertations, journal articles, monographs, books, digital forms, photographs, images, dramatic presentations, transcriptions, or any other form prepared for a limited or general public.)

Extent

6.50 linear feet

6 boxes

Additional Description

Biographical Information

Emmet John Layton was born in 1905 in St. Louis, Missouri. He received B.Arch and M.Arch degrees from Washington University it St. Louis, and trained at the Missouri Botanical Garden under Dr. Edgar S. Anderson and John Noyes. He also studied at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst under Frank Waugh.

Layton’s career as a landscape architect in St. Louis, Missouri spanned over thirty years. During this time he was in private practice with his first wife and business partner, Ruth Layton, operating under the name Layton, Layton and Associates. Layton, Layton and Associates offered services in landscape architecture; industrial development; site planning; land use studies; renewal programs; environmental design; recreational analysis and programming; master planning for parks, urban areas, institutions, new communities, subdivisions and housing projects; as well as comprehensive plans for cities, areas, and regions. From 1948 to 1959 Layton taught courses on city planning and landscape architecture at Washington University’s School of Architecture. Later in his career, Layton was appointed landscape architect at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. He died in 1985 in Clearwater Beach, Florida.

Arrangement

This collection is divided into three series as described below:

Series 01: Teaching Materials, 1930 – 1964 includes teaching material for courses taught by Emmet Layton at Washington University in St. Louis (arranged by course number and then alphabetically.

Series 02: Projects, 1956 – 1984 includes plans, drawings, and notes on specific projects. Arranged alphabetically by project name.

Series 03. Subject Files, 1923 – 1982 files on various subjects kept by Layton. Arranged alphabetically.