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Recently, Filoli received a donation of a 16mm silent film reel from Joanne Gordon, the descendent of a gardener who worked at Filoli during the Roth era. 

Watch the short clip for scenes of Filoli’s historic staff enjoying the gardens with their families in 1940 – likely a special occasion due to the Roth family not being in residence at the time, according to Joanne. 

See if you can spot:

• The Supervisor’s House and Stables where men are goofing around with a dog at the very beginning (historic staff housing out in the Natural Lands)
• The Walled Garden fountains shooting sky high
• The Crystal Springs Reservoir visible from the High Place
• A kid doing a headstand
• The sundial surrounded by yellow blooms in the colorized portion of the video
• The historic peacock chair that is still occasionally displayed in the Garden House today
• The front facade of the House absolutely covered in vines
• The empty hills behind the Clock Tower – no Highway 280 yet!
• The screened-in porches on both sides of the House, which were later removed

We hope you enjoy this wonderful peek into the past!