Tregaron Conservancy

Tregaron Conservancy
Typehistoric woodland garden
LocationWashington, D.C.
Coordinates38°55′57″N 77°03′36″W / 38.9325°N 77.0600°W / 38.9325; -77.0600
Area13 acres (5.3 ha)
Created2006
Opendawn to dusk
Statusopen year round
Waterlily pond, Klingle stream, Macomb stream
Threatened bydevelopment (1980-2006, 2015-2020)
Parkingstreet parking on Macomb and Klingle Road NW
Public transit access Red Line Cleveland Park station
Websitewww.tregaron.org
Tregaron, The Causeway
Location3029 Klingle Road, NW, Washington, D.C.
Area20.5
Built1912
ArchitectCharles A. Platt, Ellen Biddle Shipman
Architectural styleColonial Revival
Georgian Revival
Restored2009
NRHP reference No.90000910
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJune 28, 1990
Designated DCIHSJanuary 5, 1979

The Tregaron Conservancy is a 13 acre privately owned and managed historic woodland garden nature park in Northwest, Washington, D.C. and the nonprofit organization that manages it. It is an urban green space in Cleveland Park, bounded in the north by Macomb Stream and private residences, in the south and east by the Klingle Valley Trail which connects to Rock Creek Park, and to the west by the Washington International School and Twin Oaks estate.

The conservancy is part of former Tregaron Estate, which was formerly part of the neighboring estate Twin Oaks. Landscape architect Ellen Biddle Shipman, designed a “wilderness garden, with streams and bridges and paths, and native plants and dappled sunshine" planted with specimens that mimic the natural surroundings. An heir to the estate recollected the grounds as  "masses of daffodils in the spring and masses of azaleas and a little babbling brook and arched bridges under which I'm sure trolls lived."

North meadow
Macomb stream and trail
Lily pond

The cultural landscape report for Tregaron identified 6 distinct landscaping regions designed by Shipman:

  • Cow Pasture & Oak - a meadow south of the Klingle stream, on the southwest corner of the conservancy
  • Causeway & Pond Valley - containing Klingle stream running from Twin Oaks in the east into the lily pond and westward until it passes under the Klingle Valley Trail
  • Drive and Meadows - the driveway running from Macomb to Klingle Valley roads and two adjacent meadows, a sloped one to the north and a flat one to the east
  • Northeast Woodland, Stream and Trails - containing Macomb stream, forested hills, and paths connecting the Drive and Meadows to Causeway & Pond Valley
  • Macomb Entry & Woodland Slope - wooded hill between the Macomb entrance and Hilltop, Gardens & House (the slope is not open to the public, but access is allowed via the road)
  • Hilltop, Gardens & House - on the west end of the property (Not part of the conservancy. Owned and managed by the Washington International School.)

The conservancy hosts a diverse calendar of events, including tours of the conservancy, including ones focused on the site’s history, geology, birds, trees, as well as concerts, forrest bathing, Tai Chi, an Easter Egg hunt, and a discussion group for descendants of Holocaust survivors. The conservancy has formed volunteer partnerships with the Washington International School and a local gardening group.