Norah Geddes

Norah Geddes (1887–1967) was a Scottish landscape designer.

Early life and education Geddes was born in 1887. She attended her father's botany course at the University of Dundee when she was 14 before moving to the Edinburgh College of Art for drawing lessons. In 1908, the group carried out a survey to locate sites within the city that could be used to provide outdoor recreation areas for the local residents and their children. In 1909, she opened White Hart Garden below Johnstone Gardens – the first in a series of spaces brought back to life by her designs. but was left frustrated with her scope of work in the role. It was inspired by zoos in Hamburg and New York, which moved away from the caged menageries of the Victorian era and instead promoted large open enclosures and naturalistic settings. Her part in this innovation was overshadowed by those of her husband and her father.

The display included a quote from an English friend in 1923, who said "Here, among the flowers, children can play while parents, oft-times too weary to climb the steep paths to the top, can sit just within the gate and read or sew or talk as they desire."

After the Second World War, the management of the West Port Garden transferred to the City Council.

Personal life Geddes met her husband Frank Mears, an assistant to her father Patrick Geddes, in 1913. The couple lived in Ramsay Garden. Once married, their eldest son, Kenneth, was born the following year; Alastair in 1918, and John two years later. By this point, Geddes's landscape gardening career was effectively over.

Notable works The Royal Zoological Society Scotland Garden Chessel's Court, Edinburgh Johnstone Terrace, Edinburgh The West Port Garden, Edinburgh A number of playgrounds in Dublin