Landscape · a classic garden, redrawn
Scott's Plate XIII, round the Hinckley House
Frank J. Scott's The Art of Beautifying Suburban Home Grounds (1870) drew its lot plans for houses like this one. Plate XIII is his plan "for a Commodious House with a side-entrance porch, on an Inside Lot" of 160 by 300 feet. It is the plate that fits the Hinckley House: the same kind of lot, a house as wide, and one drive down the side to a carriage-house at the back. Here it is redrawn as he published it, then set on the Hinckley lot as the Historic American Buildings Survey measured it.
FeetPlate: x along the street, y back from itHinckley: E and S from the lot's north-west corner
See it in 3D The house and these grounds, growing sixty years through the seasons; walk in at eye height.
Why Plate XIII
The Hinckley lot (HABS IL-1215, measured 2003) is about 140 ft on Fourth Street and 254 ft deep on its east side, widening to about 337 ft at the back; the house stands about 145 ft back, with its drive down the west side to a garage at the back. Of Scott's 29 lot plans, XIII is the only one with that program: an inside lot of 160 × 300 ft, a large house, and a single drive down one side to a carriage-house at the rear. Its side yards (65 and 40 ft) are near Hinckley's (48–50 and 31–37), and its house is as wide (47.5 ft against 48). Scott recommends the side-drive arrangement for lots with "narrow street fronts in proportion to their depth" (pp. 85–86). The runner-up, Plate XXI, has the deep front yard but is 100 ft wide with no drive.
How it is fitted
- Mirrored. Scott's drive runs up the left of his lot, Hinckley's down the right (west) as seen from the street. Mirrored, his drive comes in about 15 ft east of the one HABS drew in 2003 (dashed on S2) and runs beside it. S2 draws his to the side of the house, then Hinckley's own on to its garage court.
- The front lawn stretched. His veranda is 70 ft from the street, Hinckley's porch 131 ft. Everything between the street and the house is drawn out to reach it, so his front groups keep their order and spacing across the lot and gain depth.
- Beside the house, 1:1. The two houses are the same width, so his side plantings keep their distance from the walls.
- Behind the house, as it falls. Hinckley's lot ends 28 ft behind the house on its east side, and its back holds the garage, drive and court that HABS drew. Scott's turn-circle would sit on the 1989 kitchen. His carriage-house, half his kitchen garden, his raspberries and the plantings listed below land off the lot, on the garage or on the drive, and are left out rather than moved.
No room on the Hinckley lot
- 6 Cercis canadensis (est.): on Hinckley's drive or its court.
- shr Cornus alba and common shrubs: on Hinckley's drive or its court.
- 8 Koelreuteria paniculata: on Hinckley's drive or its court.
- 9 Fagus sylvatica 'Pendula': on the garage HABS drew.
- 10 Tsuga canadensis: on the garage HABS drew.
- 11 Pinus strobus: on the garage HABS drew.
- 12 Fagus sylvatica f. purpurea: on Hinckley's drive or its court.
- 13 Pieris floribunda, Deutzia gracilis, Catawba rhododendrons (where 13 stands is our reading): on Hinckley's drive or its court.
- bed flowers: on the house (main block, 1886).
- 23 Juniperus communis 'Hibernica': on the house (screened porch).
- 24 Juniperus communis 'Suecica': on the house (porte-cochère).
The planting key
As Scott keys it on the plate (pp. 183–186). The modern names are ours; "est." where his name could mean more than one plant. Positions on the plate are read off its scale bar, ±2 ft. Zones are from the Missouri Botanical Garden's Plant Finder, read 2026-10-16. Hinsdale is zone 6a (USDA 2023 map): ✓ hardy, ⚠ at its limit, ✗ too tender. The last column is the same test for zone 4a, northwest Wisconsin.
| Key | Scott's words | The plant | On the plate | On the Hinckley lot | Zone | 6a | 4a | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| gate | a pair of elms, maples, chestnuts, horse-chestnuts, oaks or beeches | sugar maple, Acer saccharum (our pick of his choices) | (20.5, 9) | E 18, S 18 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | planted 10 ft from the fence and the drive (p. 183) |
| gate | the second gateway tree | sugar maple, Acer saccharum | (50.5, 9) | E 44, S 18 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 1 | the mugho pine | Pinus mugo | (4, 49) | E 7, S 97 | 2-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 1 | the dwarf white pine | Pinus strobus 'Nana' | (15, 53) | E 16, S 105 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 2 | small hardy evergreens: weeping and Swedish junipers, erect and golden yews, golden arbor-vitæ, dwarf silver fir and spruces, Daphne cneorum | a bed of dwarf conifers (p. 184) | x 34-41, y 56.5-69.5 | E 33, S 123 | 6-7 | ⚠ | ✗ | the yews are the tenderest of the bed |
| 3 | the Norway spruce | Picea abies | (6, 84) | E 10, S 149 | 2-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 3 | the oriental spruce | Picea orientalis | (14, 92) | E 17, S 156 | 4-7 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| hem | the border along the fence, of hemlocks | Tsuga canadensis | x 0-9, y 100-140 | E 11, S 184 | 3-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 4 | the cephalonian fir | Abies cephalonica | (5, 122) | E 11, S 186 | not found | — | — | |
| 4 | Nordmann's fir | Abies nordmanniana | (14, 122) | E 18, S 186 | 4-6 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 5 | the Bhotan pine | Pinus wallichiana | (45, 120) | E 34, S 169 (moved 5.3 ft off the drive) | 5-7 | ✓ | ✗ | Scott: improperly placed; it belongs 15 ft toward the front (p. 184) |
| birch | the cut-leaved weeping birch | Betula pendula 'Dalecarlica' | (60, 49) | E 50, S 97 | 2-6 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 6 | a pair of Judas trees | Cercis canadensis (est.) | (40, 161) | — | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 6 | ″ | Cercis canadensis (est.) | (41, 150) | E 29, S 210 (moved 7.7 ft off the drive) | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 7 | a weeping Japan sophora | Styphnolobium japonicum 'Pendula' | (15, 157) | E 13, S 219 | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 7 | a pair of sassafras | Sassafras albidum | (5, 171) | E 4, S 231 | 4-9 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 7 | ″ | Sassafras albidum | (15, 168) | E 13, S 228 | 4-9 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 7 | the white-flowering dogwood | Cornus florida | (11, 179) | E 10, S 237 | 5-9 | ✓ | ✗ | |
| shr | red-twigged dogwood, flowering-currants, variegated elder, and common shrubs to the rear corner | Cornus alba and common shrubs | x 0-8, y 150-250 | — | 3-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 8 | Kolreuteria paniculata | Koelreuteria paniculata | (14, 211) | — | 5-9 | ✓ | ✗ | |
| 9 | a weeping beech | Fagus sylvatica 'Pendula' | (17, 248) | — | 4-7 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 10 | masses of hemlocks | Tsuga canadensis | x 0-12, y 255-301 | — | 3-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 10 | ″ | Tsuga canadensis | x 12-50, y 285-301 | E 27, S 331 | 3-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| corner | an Austrian pine | Pinus nigra | (5, 295) | E 4, S 333 | 4-7 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 11 | a white pine | Pinus strobus | (38, 273) | — | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 11 | an Austrian pine behind it | Pinus nigra | (37, 291) | E 32, S 329 | 4-7 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| rear | white pines toward the carriage-house | Pinus strobus | (63, 292) | E 54, S 330 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| turn | a pine tree, in the turn-circle | a pine, kind not named (white pine est.) | (67, 150) | E 56, S 213 (moved 0.6 ft off the drive) | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 12 | a purple beech | Fagus sylvatica f. purpurea | (51, 209) | — | 4-7 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 13 | the choicest shrubs: Andromeda floribunda, Deutzia gracilis, rhododendrons, Sargent's hemlock | Pieris floribunda, Deutzia gracilis, Catawba rhododendrons (where 13 stands is our reading) | x 39-48, y 166-196 | — | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| grp | any good common shrubs of large size | common shrubs | x 60-70, y 168-188 | E 56, S 237 | — | — | — | |
| pear | a row of pear trees | Pyrus communis | (65, 191) | E 63, S 248 (moved 6.8 ft off the garage court, the row moving as one) | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | seven, 10 ft apart |
| pear | ″ | Pyrus communis | (65, 201) | E 63, S 256 (moved 6.8 ft off the garage court, the row moving as one) | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| pear | ″ | Pyrus communis | (65, 211) | E 63, S 264 (moved 6.8 ft off the garage court, the row moving as one) | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| pear | ″ | Pyrus communis | (65, 221) | E 63, S 272 (moved 6.8 ft off the garage court, the row moving as one) | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| pear | ″ | Pyrus communis | (65, 231) | E 63, S 281 (moved 6.8 ft off the garage court, the row moving as one) | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| pear | ″ | Pyrus communis | (65, 241) | E 63, S 289 (moved 6.8 ft off the garage court, the row moving as one) | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| pear | ″ | Pyrus communis | (65, 252) | E 63, S 298 (moved 6.8 ft off the garage court, the row moving as one) | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| C | cherry trees | Prunus avium (est.) | (69, 272) | E 60, S 314 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| C | cherry trees | Prunus avium (est.) | (85, 295) | E 73, S 333 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| C | cherry trees | Prunus avium (est.) | (100, 159) | E 86, S 221 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| C | cherry trees | Prunus avium (est.) | (129, 155) | E 111, S 218 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| C | cherry trees | Prunus avium (est.) | (148, 154) | E 128, S 217 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Y | peach trees | Prunus persica | (76, 290) | E 66, S 328 | 5-8 | ✓ | ✗ | |
| Y | peach trees | Prunus persica | (71, 280) | E 61, S 320 | 5-8 | ✓ | ✗ | |
| Y | peach trees | Prunus persica | (63, 262) | E 54, S 305 | 5-8 | ✓ | ✗ | |
| bed | the bed for the choice small pet-flowers of the lady of the house | flowers | x 68-76, y 128-136 | — | — | — | — | |
| 14 | the old red tartarian honeysuckle | Lonicera tatarica, red | (73, 10.5) | E 64, S 21 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 15 | a Japan weeping sophora, Andromeda arborea, Deutzias crenata alba and rubra | Styphnolobium japonicum 'Pendula', Oxydendrum arboreum, Deutzia crenata | x 80-98, y 7-21 | E 78, S 28 | 5-9 | ✓ | ✗ | |
| 16 | Euonymus latifolius, Weigelas rosea, amabilis and arborea, the great-leaved and the dwarf snow-ball | Euonymus latifolius, Weigela florida, Viburnum macrocephalum, V. opulus 'Nanum' | x 100-120, y 8-21 | E 96, S 29 | 4-8 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| 17 | the great-leaved magnolia | Magnolia macrophylla | (131, 15) | E 111, S 29 (moved 2.6 ft off the walk from the gate) | 5-8 | ✓ | ✗ | |
| 18 | a flat pine arch over the gateway | a pair of pines trained over the gate (white pine est.) | (141, 4) | E 120, S 8 (moved 1.6 ft off the walk from the gate) | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 18 | ″ | white pine est. | (156, 5) | E 135, S 10 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 19 | Spiræa callosa alba, Deutzia gracilis, Spiræa reevesi flore plena, S. callosa fortunii, Daphne cneorum, and a Chinese red or purple magnolia | Spiraea japonica, Deutzia gracilis, S. cantoniensis, Daphne cneorum, Magnolia × soulangeana | x 113-125, y 34-47 | E 106, S 80 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 20 | the weeping juniper | Juniperus communis 'Oblonga Pendula' | (156, 25) | E 136, S 50 | 2-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 21 | a grand rose-bed | roses | x 123-139, y 53-69 | E 117, S 120 | — | — | — | |
| 22 | a belt of common shrubs | common shrubs | x 152-161, y 57-125 | E 138, S 151 | — | — | — | |
| 23 | an Irish juniper | Juniperus communis 'Hibernica' | (151, 62) | E 133, S 123 | 2-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 23 | Irish junipers at the bay-window's corners | Juniperus communis 'Hibernica' | (122, 99) | — | 2-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 23 | ″ | Juniperus communis 'Hibernica' | (122, 113) | E 110, S 177 | 2-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 24 | a Swedish juniper | Juniperus communis 'Suecica' | (137, 89) | — | 2-7 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 25 | Siberian arbor-vitæs, a high hedge round to 26 | Thuja occidentalis | x 146-158, y 88-131 | E 135, S 174 | 2-7 | ✓ | ✓ | drawn as a band; on the plate it bends round to 26 (est.) |
| 26 | a Nordmann's fir | Abies nordmanniana | (133, 131) | E 119, S 195 | 4-6 | ✓ | ⚠ | |
| st | street trees | kind not named (sugar maple est.) | (20, -16) | E 17, S -16 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| st | ″ | sugar maple est. | (50, -16) | E 43, S -16 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| st | ″ | sugar maple est. | (80, -16) | E 69, S -16 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| st | ″ | sugar maple est. | (110, -16) | E 95, S -16 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| st | ″ | sugar maple est. | (140, -16) | E 120, S -16 | 3-8 | ✓ | ✓ |
What the test finds
- At Hinsdale, too tender: nothing.
- Here, in zone 4a, too tender: Cornus florida, Koelreuteria paniculata, Magnolia macrophylla, Pinus wallichiana, Prunus persica, Styphnolobium japonicum 'Pendula', Oxydendrum arboreum, Deutzia crenata, a bed of dwarf conifers. The plan is drawn for Hinsdale, so these are listed, not replaced.
- Invasive now: the tartarian honeysuckle (14) is one of the bush honeysuckles Illinois's Exotic Weed Act (525 ILCS 10/3) has designated exotic weeds since 2016 (Public Act 99-81): it can't be sold or planted there without a permit.
Sources and limits
- Scott, 1870. The plate and pp. 182–188, from the Getty's 1870 Appleton copy (leaf n216), read against Cornell's copy, which is the 1886 Alden reprint of the same pages (leaf n218). Public domain.
- The Hinckley House. HABS IL-1215 (Library of Congress), sheets 1 and 2: the lot, house, drive and garage ±2 ft. The lot and garage are as HABS drew them in 2003, which may not be the lot of 1886.
- Scott's choices. Where he gives a choice (the gateway pair: "elms or maples, chestnuts, horse-chestnuts, oaks or beeches") we drew sugar maple, which grows at both sites; where he names no kind (the turn-circle's pine, the pines over the gate, the street trees) the drawing marks its guess est.
- Kept off the drive and walks. Each plant's crown at ten years, plus 1 ft, stays off their width (est.). Moved: Pinus wallichiana (5) 5.3 ft off the drive; Cercis canadensis (6) 7.7 ft off the drive; a pine, kind not named (turn) 0.6 ft off the drive; Pyrus communis (pear) 6.8 ft off the garage court, the row moving as one (all 7); Magnolia macrophylla (17) 2.6 ft off the walk from the gate; a pair of pines trained over the gate (18) 1.6 ft off the walk from the gate. In the groups, 15 of the plants dealt over their beds would stand on one and are left out (the beds' plants are dealt by us, est.).
- Left out: the flower beds' contents ("need not be described in detail", p. 186), the vases' plants, and plant models of these species.