Carlton Sturges Abbott, [Proposed designs for James River Park, Richmond, Virginia], ca. 1970

Access and use

Location of collection:
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia
800 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Archives Reference Services
Phone: (804) 692-3888
Restrictions:

Collection is open to research.

Terms of access:

There are no restrictions.

Preferred citation:

Carlton Sturges Abbott. [Proposed designs for James River Park, Richmond, Virginia], Accession 42613. Personal papers collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Summary

Creator:
Carlton Sturges Abbott
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Carlton Sturges Abbott. [Proposed designs for James River Park, Richmond, Virginia], Accession 42613. Personal papers collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

These accessions consists of one black and white and three color renderings by Williamsburg, Virginia, architect Carlton Sturges Abbott. The drawings depict proposed development along the James River in Richmond, Virginia. The color drawings include a plan for Belle Isle which features a fountain and multi-level observation decks; tall office and/or apartment towers, perhaps also located on Belle Isle; and a westward view of Richmond from along the James. The black and white rendering features tall observation platforms along the south bank of the James similar to those erected in James River Park that provide access to Riverside Drive.

Biographical / historical:

Carlton Sturges Abbott (1939- ) was born in Salem, Virginia. His father, Stanley W. Abbott, is best known as primary designer and first resident landscape architect of the Blue Ridge Parkway. During his father's stint on the parkway, the family lived in Salem. Afterward, they relocated to the Tidewater region. The younger Abbott attended the School of Architecture at the University of Virginia, graduating in 1963 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. His post-graduate work took place at the famed Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. Abbott applied his skills in a number of fields including architecture, urban planning, landscape architecture, sculpture, and graphic arts. His Williamsburg, Virginia, firm, Carlton Abbott and Partners, Architects and Landscape Architects, has designed over fifty local, state, and national park projects.

Carlton Abbott is as well-known for his art as for his architecture. He has put on numerous one-man shows of his work and his graphic designs and renderings have received over sixty awards of merit. For his architectural work, Abbott has received dozens of awards, including Fitz-Gibbon Architecture Firm award and the William C. Noland Medal. He was appointed as a Visiting Professor of Design at the School of Architecture at the University of Virginia in 1977. Carlton Sturges Abbott was elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects in 1983.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Mike Yengling, Richmond, VA, 4 April 2006 (42513). Transferred from Richmond City, Department of Community Development, Richmond, VA, 4 April 2006 (42514).
Physical description:
2 sheets, ink and colored pencil on foam board, 76 x 102 cm. (42613); 1 sheet, ink and colored pencil on foam board, 76 x 91 cm. and 1 sheet, black and white print over fiberboard, 72 x 102 cm. (42614).