Oldfields–Lilly House & Gardens

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

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Oldfields–Lilly House & Gardens in Indianapolis, Indiana, is a historic 26-acre estate that was originally built between 1909 and 1913 by architect Lewis Ketcham Davis for Hugh McKennan Landon, a prominent Indianapolis businessman.

The estate, designed in the French Renaissance Revival style, was part of the Town of Woodstock development and featured a French-inspired house, greenhouses, and extensive gardens. In 1932, Josiah K. Lilly Jr., an influential local philanthropist and businessman, purchased the property and undertook significant renovations and expansions, adding new buildings and updating interiors while preserving the estate's character.

The gardens were designed by Percival Gallagher of the Olmsted Brothers firm, blending formal and naturalistic landscapes with notable features like a walled sunken garden and the Ravine Garden with its unique watercourse lined by rocks and plants. Today, Oldfields is part of the Newfields campus, with the Lilly House restored to its 1930s appearance and open to the public as a historic house museum.

The gardens and grounds remain a treasured example of American country estate landscaping, offering visitors insight into early 20th-century design, family life, and horticultural artistry.