Co-authored by Wil Gates, Bob Weygand, Karen Beck, and updated by Elena Pascarella and Nate Socha. 

(We hope readers will forgive any errors and omissions that the passage of time and our faulty memories may play in this recollection.) 

During the 1970s and into the 1980s, Landscape Architecture in Rhode Island drew increasing interest from the community and saw a growing number of practicing landscape architects (LAs). However, the Rhode Island Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (RIASLA) did not yet exist, despite the fact that Rhode Island’s landscape architecture licensure law had been enacted by 1975. This law, one of the first landscape architecture “practice” acts in the country, clearly exhibited the resourcefulness and foresight of future RIASLA members. 

When local LAs first met about establishing a RIASLA chapter, many belonged to either the Connecticut or the Boston chapter but had little professional or social interaction with colleagues in either chapter. The consensus was that an ASLA chapter based within the state would help develop a professional organization and promote public recognition for Rhode Island landscape architects and landscape architecture. 

Together, Wil Gates, Bob Weygand, Albert Veri, Colgate Searle, Richard Hanson, Sara Bradford, Derek Bradford, Cecelia Searle, Pamela Faulkner, Francis “TP” Plimpton, and others held our inaugural meeting in Westerly at the Westerly Library adjacent to Wilcox Park in 1986. TP Plimpton, now deceased, was elected our first Trustee. Wil Gates was elected the Chapter’s first President. The atmosphere was very convivial and boded well for the growth of the profession and relationships that—to this day—have marked the high quality of RIASLA. 

Since our founding, RIASLA has not only sustained its contributions but has expanded its impact in the field of landscape architecture. The Rhode Island School of Design transitioned from an accredited BLA program into a Master of Landscape Architecture program, while the University of Rhode Island evolved from a “concentration in landscape design” into an outstanding, fully accredited BLA program. The RIASLA has continued to contribute financially, intellectually, and emotionally to both programs. Many of the students from these institutions have gone on to become full ASLA members and successful landscape architects, not just in Rhode Island but across the nation and internationally. 

It is our members who have made it possible to achieve significant accomplishments with limited resources, from stepping up to become executive committee members to individual efforts on state and local boards, in state government, in our schools, and in both public and private landscapes. We have accomplished much in our 38 years, and we are committed to continuing this legacy of excellence.