The Drawings + Documents Archive’s at Ball State University has recently digitized the Claire Bennett Associates (CBA) Landscape Architecture collection. The collection is open for the community to enjoy the working drawings and prints for a number of their landscape projects. 

Claire Bennett, FASLA 

After finishing college, Claire Bennett, moved to Indianapolis in 1958 and worked with landscape architect Frits Loonsten for a few years before becoming one of the first landscape architects at Browning Day Associates (now Browning Day Mullins Dierdorf). Bennett began Claire Bennett Associates in 1974 which, at one time, became the largest single discipline landscape design offices in Indiana. It started as a small practice that focused on large scale residential design and commercial landscape architecture design. Later, Joann Green joined Claire as a partner and vice-president in 1992 and became sole owner in 1997 upon Claire’s retirement. The firm later changed its name to Landstory.

The Collection

The Claire Bennett Associates digital collection consists of drawings and prints for landscape projects primarily in the Indianapolis metropolitan region.

The collection of work begins in 1978 with the Pate residence landscape plan and concludes in 1997 with the Shoemaker residence. A majority of the projects are residential landscape designs but also include apartment-complex master plans, golf-course design, and public school projects.

Significant projects in the collection include Stony Creek Golf Course in Noblesville, Indiana, the United Airlines Plaza at the Indianapolis International Airport, St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Indianapolis, and certain residential landscape designs including the Sato residence and the Byrum-Gates residence.

The Claire Bennett Associates Drawings were received by Drawings and Documents Archive as a donation from Joann Green in 2004.

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About the Drawings and Documents Archive

To learn more about the archive collections please visit the webpage to gain access to a project database with over 15,000 projects listed, find an overview of collections, and view other digital collections. The Drawings and Documents Archive is part of the Archives and Special Collections unit of University Libraries and is managed as a collaborative effort with the Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning. It is currently celebrating 52 years of preserving, advocating, and disseminating items that document the cultural heritage of Indiana and fuel community revitalization efforts.

Special Thanks

Special thanks to the Metadata and Digital Initiatives Department of Ball State University Libraries’ for their part in the scanning and creation of the online digital collection.