One of Cork’s most famous sons, horticulturalist John Saul, who was instrumental in the planning and development of the Mall and other areas in Washington DC, was recalled in his native village of Castlemartyr yesterday, when a plaque was unveiled in his memory.
John Saul was born at Carewswood, the Dower house of the Castlemartyr Estate in Co Cork in 1819, where his father James and grandfather Barnabas worked as gardeners.
Inheriting the passion for horticulture from his relatives, Saul arrived in Washington DC in 1851 to supervise the improvement of the public grounds around The Mall, Smithsonian Grounds, the Square south of Presidents (now the Ellipse), and Lafayette Square.
