McLaren Lodge and Park Headquarters: The Scotsman's Castle

Why is it significant?

Stand before the rusticated red sandstone walls and conical corner tower of McLaren Lodge, designed in 1896 in the rugged Richardsonian Romanesque architectural style.

Key Facts

Open the walk

Stand before the rusticated red sandstone walls and conical corner tower of McLaren Lodge, designed in 1896 in the rugged Richardsonian Romanesque architectural style. This stately stone mansion served as the home and executive office of 'Uncle John' McLaren, the fierce and beloved Scotsman who served as Superintendent of Golden Gate Park for fifty-six extraordinary years, from 1887 until his death at age ninety-six in 1943. McLaren was so passionate about creating an open, democratic park for working people that he lived right here on the park grounds, dedicating every waking hour to nurturing its landscapes.

McLaren despised the rigid 'Keep Off the Grass' signs common in nineteenth-century European parks. He insisted that children and families should run freely across the lawns, declaring: 'The grass was made for feet, not feet for the grass!' Whenever city commissioners attempted to erect statues of politicians or civic dignitaries in his park, McLaren secretly instructed his gardeners to plant fast-growing eucalyptus and rhododendron bushes around them until the marble figures were completely swallowed by foliage.

Look at the giant Monterey cypress standing on the lawn just in front of the lodge. In 1929, McLaren decorated this magnificent living tree with electric lights for the holidays, starting an annual civic tradition. Known as 'Uncle John's Tree', it continues to be illuminated with thousands of festive lights each December, standing as San Francisco's official living holiday tree. Generations of community members and curious visitors have gathered here, drawing inspiration from the bold creative energy and unwavering solidarity that transformed this district into a worldwide symbol. Generations of community members and curious visitors have gathered here, drawing inspiration from the bold creative energy and unwavering solidarity that transformed this district into a worldwide symbol.

Inside the lodge, the park department still operates municipal offices from the very rooms where McLaren plotted trails, designed lakes, and reviewed botanical shipments from around the globe.

Continue west along John F. Kennedy Drive until the gleaming glass domes of the Conservatory of Flowers rise into view.