{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}} {{Infobox person | name = Julia Lester Dillon | image = The blossom circle of the year in southern gardens (1922) (20386018045).jpg | alt = Photograph of landscaping around a square reflective pool with a cherub statue. | caption = Landscaping by Julia Dillon, white hyacinths around a reflecting pool. | birth_name = <!-- only use if different from name --> | birth_date = {{Birth date|1871|03|09}} | birth_place = [[Warren County, Georgia]] | death_date = {{Death date and age|1959|03|24|1871|03|09}} | death_place = [[Augusta, Georgia]] | other_names = | occupation = teacher, landscape architect, gardening columnist | years_active = 1890-1954 | known_for = Southern gardening | notable_works = }}
'''Julia Lester Dillon''' (1871–1959) was an American teacher from [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], who because of the death of her husband and her [[hearing loss]], trained in [[landscape architecture]]. She was one of the first women to write extensively about gardening in the south and ran a regularly featured column which appeared in several newspapers and magazines. She designed spaces to enhance post offices for the U.S. Department of the Treasury and created the Memorial Park in Sumter, South Carolina. Based on her experience, she then served as Sumter Superintendent of Parks and Trees for twenty years. Dillon remained in Sumter after retiring. She continued writing until 1954, despite losing both her hearing and her sight. Julia Lester Dillon died in Sumter on March 24, 1959. She is buried in Magnolia Cemetery in Augusta, Georgia. She was inscribed upon the [[Georgia Women of Achievement]] roster in 2003.
==Biography== Julia Lester was born on March 9, 1871,<ref name=date>{{cite web|last1=Lythgoe|first1=Darrin|title=Julia Lester|url=http://singletonfamily.org/getperson.php?personID=I237304&tree=1#cite1|publisher=Singleton Family|access-date=22 December 2015|date=2001|archive-date=May 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520124610/http://singletonfamily.org/getperson.php?personID=I237304&tree=1#cite1|url-status=dead}}</ref> in Warren County, Georgia, to Martha (née Pemble) and Benjamin D. Lester and grew up in [[Augusta, Georgia]].<ref name="bio SC">{{cite news|last1=Moore|first1=Ivy|title=Georgia Names Dillon 'Woman of Achievement'|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=BAkvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=v9oFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1672%2C3474584|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=The Item|date=February 26, 2003|location=Sumter, South Carolina|page=4A}}</ref> In 1866, she graduated from [[Tubman High School]] of Augusta<ref name="Augusta Magazine">{{cite web|last1=Caldwell|first1=Lee Ann|title=Julia Lester Dillon: A Most Remarkable Woman|url=http://www.augustamagazine.com/Augusta-Magazine/February-March%202013%20/Julia-Lester-Dillon-A-Most-Remarkable-Woman/|publisher=Augusta Magazine|access-date=22 December 2015|location=Augusta, Georgia|date=February–March 2013}}</ref> and went on to further her education at [[Peabody College]], where she earned her teaching credentials in 1890.<ref name="The Cultural Landscape Foundation">{{cite web|title=Julia Lester Dillon|url=https://tclf.org/pioneer/julia-dillon|publisher=The Cultural Landscape Foundation|access-date=22 December 2015|location=Washington, D.C.|date=2001}}</ref> That same year, she began teaching and was working at the Davidson Grammar School<ref name="Augusta Magazine" /> in Augusta.<ref name=Exposition>{{cite web|title=City of Augusta Pictured in the Exposition Edition of 1891|url=http://www.memory.loc.gov/service/gdc/scd0001/2010/20101119004ci/20101119004ci.pdf|publisher=The Augusta Chronicle|location=Augusta, Georgia|page=13|date=1891|access-date=December 22, 2015|archive-date=February 10, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170210015949/http://www.memory.loc.gov/service/gdc/scd0001/2010/20101119004ci/20101119004ci.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Lester married William Bennett Dillon,<ref name="husband's name">{{cite news|last1=McElveen|first1=W. A. "Bubba"|title=Julia Dillon made Sumter a prettier place|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lb4oAAAAIBAJ&sjid=QgYGAAAAIBAJ&pg=2115%2C450672|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=The Item|date=March 2, 1995|location=Sumter, South Carolina}}</ref> who was principal of Central Grammar School, in 1892 but was widowed by 1894. Forced to be self-supporting, Dillon returned to teaching and taught for several years at Houghton Grammar School; then in Louisiana between 1905 and 1906; and later at a women's night school, D'Antignac School, for several years. Because of hearing loss, possibly due to [[diphtheria]], she looked for other sources of income, including writing and becoming a stenographer for Dr. T. E. Oertel for a time.<ref name="Augusta Magazine" />
==Landscape career== In 1907 she took courses at [[Columbia University]] and later at [[Harvard College]] in landscape design. She began a private practice in Augusta working on residential landscapes and expanded to the public sector, completing projects for both parks and schools. She continued writing in the 1910s and 1920s, publishing articles about southern gardening in ''The Florists' Exchange'', ''The Flower Grower'' and ''[[House & Garden (magazine)|House and Garden]]'',<ref name="The Cultural Landscape Foundation" /> as well as publishing an ongoing column on gardening for ''[[The Augusta Chronicle]]''.<ref name="Augusta Magazine" /> Between 1914 and 1917, she was commissioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury to landscape several post offices and custom houses<ref name="The Cultural Landscape Foundation" /> in Florida, Georgia and North and South Carolina.<ref name="husband's name" /> In addition to her commissioned work, Dillon also created a project to teach gardening to children. The [[Merchants and Manufacturers Association]] provided funds for school children to plant on empty lots and offered prizes for beautification. The project was so successful that it was launched into a citywide campaign which included involvement from businesses and various civic organizations. During [[World War I]], Dillon joined the [[Red Cross]] and along with other women participated in the Woman's Messenger Motor Service, (officially called the [[American Red Cross Motor Corps|Red Cross Motor Corps]]) and made both garments and surgical supplies. In 1919, she served on the board of the State Federation of Professional and Businesswomen's Club, which in addition to improving the professional prospects of women, urged the legislature to grant [[suffrage]].<ref name="Augusta Magazine" />
In 1920, land was donated by citizens in [[Sumter, South Carolina]], to create Memorial Park as a memorial to soldiers from the first World War; Dillon was hired to complete the design and supervise the project.<ref name="husband's name" /> Though she moved to Sumter, around the same time, Dillon was elected to serve as the Chairman of the Forestry Committee for the Georgia Federation of Women's Clubs. In 1921, she attended the Forestry Congress in her capacity as chair<ref name="chair in Georgia">{{cite news|title=Club Woman of Georgia Holds Unique Position|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/profile/susun-wilkinson/clipnumber/23467/|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=July 3, 1921|location=Atlanta, Georgia|page=28|via = [[Newspaperarchive.com]]}} {{open access}}</ref> and was considered one of the experts in her field.<ref name=expert>{{cite news|title=Mrs. Julia Dillon, Forestry Expert, Here for Congress|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/profile/susun-wilkinson/clipnumber/23466/|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=July 21, 1921|location=Atlanta, Georgia|page=6|via = [[Newspaperarchive.com]]}} {{open access}}</ref> Her 1922 book, ''The Blossom Circle of the Year in Southern Gardens'', became widely known<ref name="The Cultural Landscape Foundation" /> and then in 1927, she pushed for the founding of Sumter's first [[garden club]].<ref name="husband's name" /> When she moved to Sumter, Dillon continued with her writing, publishing columns on gardening which regularly appeared in both ''[[The Item|The Sumter Daily Item]]'' and ''[[The State (newspaper)|The State]]'' published in [[Columbia, South Carolina]],<ref name=plaque>{{cite news|title=Fitting Tribute Paid to Julia Lester Dillon|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=rDEvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fKoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1372%2C6335381|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=The Sumter Daily Item|date=March 31, 1965|location=Sumter, South Carolina|page=6B}}</ref> as well as ''[[The Atlanta Journal-Constitution]]''.<ref name=Atlanta>{{cite news|title=Forestry Chairman Urges Protection for Trees|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/profile/susun-wilkinson/clipnumber/23465/|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=February 20, 1921|location=Atlanta, Georgia|page=30|via = [[Newspaperarchive.com]]}} {{open access}}</ref> Upon completion of the city park, Dillon was offered a full-time position as the city landscape architect,<ref name="The Cultural Landscape Foundation" /> in 1928 as the Sumter Superintendent of Parks and Trees. Among many projects she planned during this period was the 1938 design for Swan Lake Iris Gardens, though the land was not donated until 1949, after<ref name="Swan park">{{cite news|title=New project tracks endangered Trumpeter swan|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=W28oAAAAIBAJ&sjid=FgYGAAAAIBAJ&pg=2326%2C2439557|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=The Item|date=February 16, 2000|location=Sumter, South Carolina}}</ref> Dillon's retirement in 1948.<ref name="The Cultural Landscape Foundation" /> When she retired, Dillon returned to Georgia and continued writing about gardening even though she had also began to lose her sight.<ref name="The Cultural Landscape Foundation" /> Her column ran in the ''Flower Grower'' magazine from 1936 to 1954.<ref name="Georgia Women of Achievement">{{cite news|last1=Cline|first1=Erica C.|title=Blossom of the Garden City|url=http://old.chronicle.augusta.com/stories/030903/fea_women1.shtml|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=Augusta Chronicle|date=March 8, 2003|location=Augusta, Georgia}}</ref>
She died on March 24, 1959, in Augusta, Georgia, and was buried at the [[Magnolia Cemetery (Augusta, Georgia)|Magnolia Cemetery]] beside her husband.<ref name="bio SC" /> Posthumously, in 1965 a plaque bearing her name was erected by the Sumter Garden Club to honor her contributions to the city<ref name=plaque /> and in 2003, she was inscribed upon the Georgia Women of Achievement roster.<ref name="bio SC" /> Dillon is credited with coining the phrase "The Garden City of the South" to refer to Augusta, Georgia, and was called the "dean of Southern gardening" by ''Flower Grower'' magazine.<ref name="Georgia Women of Achievement" />
==Projects== * 1914 Twin Gables gardens, Augusta, Georgia<ref name="Twin Gables">{{cite web|title=Dillon, Julia Lester|url=http://georgiawomen.org/2010/10/dillon-julia-lester/|publisher=Georgia Women of Achievement|access-date=22 December 2015|location=Macon, Georgia|date=2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303174036/http://georgiawomen.org/2010/10/dillon-julia-lester/|archive-date=3 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> * 1917 Thomasville Georgia Post Office landscape<ref name="Thomasville, Georgia">{{cite news|title=Plan to Beauty Post Office Grounds|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/profile/susun-wilkinson/clipnumber/23469/|access-date=22 December 2015|publisher=Thomasville Daily Times Enterprise|date=March 6, 1917|location=Thomasville, Georgia|page=3|via = [[Newspaperarchive.com]]}} {{open access}}</ref> *1920–1924 Memorial Park, Sumter, South Carolina<ref name="husband's name" />
==Selected works== *{{cite book|last=Dillon|first=Julia Lester |title=[[iarchive:blossomcircleofy00dill/mode/2up|The blossom circle of the year in southern gardens]]|year=1922|publisher=A.T. De La Mare Company|location=New York, New York|oclc=1718636}} *{{cite book|last=Dillon|first=Julia Lester |title=Landscape design: twenty lessons|year=1931|location=Augusta, Georgia|oclc=71049064}}
== References == {{Reflist|30em}}
{{Authority control}} {{Georgia Women of Achievement}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dillon, Julia Lester}} [[Category:1871 births]] [[Category:1959 deaths]] [[Category:American women architects]] [[Category:Peabody College alumni]] [[Category:Educators from Georgia (U.S. state)]] [[Category:American women educators]] [[Category:People from Augusta, Georgia]] [[Category:American landscape architects]] [[Category:Women landscape architects]] [[Category:20th-century American women writers]] [[Category:20th-century American non-fiction writers]] [[Category:Deaf writers]] [[Category:American women in World War I]] [[Category:American deaf people]] [[Category:American women non-fiction writers]] [[Category:Clubwomen]] [[Category:Deaf educators]] [[Category:American writers with disabilities]]