The Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden was the Japanese garden in a public botanic garden in the United States. The garden was largely funded by the philanthropist Alfred T. White. The Japanese Consul-General was consulted to find the designer of the garden, who recommended the architect Takeo Shiota. Takeo Shiota sought to adopt Japanese gardening styles to the American context, resulting in a beautifully unique landscape. The garden opened to the public on June 6th, 1915.