1880s

Florida embraced water hyacinth for its purple flowers in the 1880s; after spreading past 120,000 acres, it was cut it to about 2,000 acres statewide

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What began as a garden favorite ended up clogging rivers and lakes. (AI-generated/ChatGPT)

Some plants look too pretty to cause trouble. Water hyacinth is a good example. The floating plant was introduced to Florida in the 1880s, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. By the early 1960s, it spanned more than 120,000 acres of public lakes and navigable rivers. That’s a lot of water going … Read more

In the 1880s, Adolph Sutro built a 22-acre San Francisco estate filled with hundreds of statues and opened its gardens to the public; the mansion was later demolished and the land became a park

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In the 1880s, Adolph Sutro built a 22-acre San Francisco estate filled with hundreds of statues and opened its gardens to the public; the mansion was later demolished and the land became a park

Sutro Heights Park in San Francisco, CaliforniaPhoto credit: Canva On a windswept bluff overlooking the Pacific in western San Francisco, a once grand estate rose from the dunes in the 1880s, its gardens dotted with hundreds of classical statues and its mansion visible for miles around. The property belonged to Adolph Sutro, a former mayor … Read more