Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory - Old photos
Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory

The Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory under construction on July 26, 1902

The conservatory, left, and Belle Isle Aquarium under construction in 1903.

The original exterior of the conservatory can be seen in this photo from about 1920.

The conservatory, shortly after opening in 1904

The original exterior of the conservatory can be seen in this photo from about 1920.

Some women visit the conservatory in 1918

A man paddles by the conservatory

A pair of cactus in 1980 at the conservatory

Santa and his reindeer are surrounded by some 5,000 poinsettias at the 1978 Christmas show in the conservatory.

Bradford pear trees dot the front of the conservatory in 1980.

Pat O'Connor tends to the plants at the conservatory in 1989.

Elmer Habel, a retired senior floriculturist on Belle Isle, smells a geranium on a trip to the Belle Isle conservatory in 1982.

Hospice worker Laurie Tobel takes patient Elmer Habel, who once worked as a senior floriculturist at the park, for a pass inside the conservatory in 1982.

The flora in the conservatory in 1982

Anna Scripps Whitcomb's orchid collection that she donated to the conservatory, seen here in March 1955

The conservatory in 1963

Mr. Mrs. John Hurley of St. Clair Shores, Mich., and their kids check out the conservatory in April 1963.

Mr. and Mrs. James Whitcomb and Mrs. Walter O’Hair officially dedicate the conservatory in honor of Anna Scripps Whitcomb in the 1950s.

Chrysanthemums in the conservatory in the 1920s

The conservatory, top, and Belle Isle Casino in the 1920s

An aerial view of the conservatory in April 1979

The conservatory in April 1963

An aerial view of the conservatory in April 1979

The conservatory in 1973

The conservatory in 1963

Carl Skibicke tends to roses he planted in front of the conservatory on Sept. 10, 1990. The garden replaced teh old rose garden that was removed in the 1950s.

Warren Peterson, head of the floriculture units of the Detroit Department of Parks & Recreation, inside the conservatory in February 1976


The Belle Isle Aquarium and Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory, as seen from the air in this 1931 photo

The Conservatory in 1961

The Conservatory in June 1963


The Conservatory in 1953, shortly before its original ornate exterior was removed

An unidentified gentleman striking a post in front of the Conservatory

The Conservatory posing as a backdrop for a 1977 Oldsmobile Toronado

A wedding party posing in front of the Conservatory in this undated photo

The beautiful, ornate original exterior provides a stunning backdrop for this family photo



A woman poses in front of the ornate original exterior, a far cry from the plain aluminum that replaced it in 1953.

Some kiddos in front of the Conservatory

A kiddo posing in front of the Conservatory in this undated family photo

An undated family portrait between the Conservatory and Aquarium

An undated photo of a group in front of the Conservatory



An unidentified child in front of the Conservatory and Aquarium

A group enjoys a day on Belle Isle in front of the Conservatory in this undated photo.
