Founded by Thomas Jefferson and established in 1819, the University of Virginia is the only American university designated as a World Heritage site. Thomas Jefferson’s Academical Village is designated a National Historic Landmark and appears on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register.
Carr's Hill
Tuesday, April 24, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Located on the hill above the corner of Rugby Road and University Avenue, Carr’s Hill is home to the University's president. Currently, the home is occupied by U.Va.'s Eighth President, Teresa A. Sullivan and her husband, Douglas Laycock.
In 2009, the University celebrated the centennial of Carr’s Hill, as designed by the New York architecture firm McKim, Mead and White. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the house was part of the late 1890s-to-1900s building campaign that also included Cabell, Rouss, Cocke, and Garrett Halls and the North Portico and Rotunda interior.
Tours of the gardens will be given by Master Gardener John Sauer, Carr’s Hill gardener for Presidents Hereford, O’Neil, Casteen, and Sullivan.
Please note: Carr’s Hill is a private home, and only certain areas are open.
The Gardens, University of Virginia
Tuesday, April 24, at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on the Rotunda steps - Lawn side
The Garden Club of Virginia restored the University’s Pavilion Gardens with proceeds from Historic Garden Week, beginning with the West Pavilion gardens in 1947. Restoration included the surrounding serpentine walls, an original part of Jefferson’s Academical Village. The Garden Club of Virginia hired noted Colonial Williamsburg landscape architects Alden Hopkins and Donald Parker to design the Colonial Revival gardens. The West Pavilion Gardens were restored between 1947 and 1953 and the East Lawn between 1960 and 1965. Work in the gardens continues to be supported by the Garden Club of Virginia.
Pavilion Homes - West Lawn
| Pavilion I: | Bob Pianta and Ann McAndrew |
| Pavilion III: | Harry Harding and Shirley Lin |
| Pavilion V: | Pat Lampkin and Wayne Cozart |
| Pavilion VII: | Colonnade Club |
| Pavilion IX: | Dorrie and Barry Fontaine |
Student Room
43 West Lawn, home of Casey Elizabeth Enders, will be open for viewing. Living on the Lawn in one of the original student rooms designed by Thomas Jefferson is an honor accorded to students in their final year of undergraduate study at the University.
Edgar Allan Poe Room
Tuesday, April 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Poe registered at the University of Virginia on February 14, 1826, the second session of the University. He lived in Room 13, West Range and was an active member of the Jefferson Literary Society. The University’s Raven Society maintains Poe’s room on the West Range as recognition of his time here.
The Mary and David Harrison Institute for American History, Literature, and Culture and The Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
Tuesday, April 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Special Presentation at 2 p.m.
The University of Virginia Library’s Harrison Institute/Small Special Collections Library is located on McCormick Road between Alderman Library and Peabody Hall. Landscape surrounding the Harrison Institute/Small Special Collections Library was designed by the renowned Washington D.C. firm Oehme van Sweden. The landscape architect was Eric Groft, a 1985 U.Va. graduate.
On view in the Main Gallery of the Harrison Institute/Small Special Collections Library is an exhibit entitled “Rave Reviews: Bestselling Fiction in America.” In addition to showcasing select bestsellers from the Library’s Lillian Gary Taylor Collection of Popular American Fiction, this exhibit will highlight new trends in bestseller lists, reading technologies, and publishing.
Additional exhibits about the Declaration of Independence and the historic James River estate, Flowerdew Hundred, will also be on view. Docents will be available to answer questions.
SPECIAL PRESENTATION: 2 p.m. in the Auditorium of the Harrison Institute/Small Special Collections Library.
“The Dell: A Working Landscape Restored”, a presentation by Warren T. Byrd Jr., CLA, FASLA, of Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects. Mr. Byrd talks about the award-winning restoration of the Dell. Finished in 2009, this complex storm water management project has transformed a neglected marsh into a beautifully designed and ecologically diverse 11-acre valley. Described as a “hybrid landscape”, the Dell now offers habitat for wildlife, serves as a landscape classroom and botanical garden, and provides recreational areas for visitors and the University Community alike.
Following, a brief walking tour and a showing of maps and other rare materials illustrating the history and design of the Dell, Meadow Creek, and the areas surrounding is scheduled.
Morea Garden and Arboretum
Tuesday, April 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Located on Sprigg Lane, off Emmet Street just north of Alumni Hall, the Morea Garden features a special selection of shrubs and trees surrounding a historic Federal period home. The house is named after the mulberries cultivated for experiments with silkworms.
Morea was built by John Patten Emmet, one of the first professors chosen by Mr. Jefferson for the University. The large old trees and a beautifully landscaped botanical collection were started by The Albemarle Garden Club in 1964. Morea was the runner-up for the Garden Club of Virginia’s Common Wealth Award in 2005 and 2006. Tours will be limited to the gardens.
Morven
Saturday, April 21, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
In 2001, philanthropist John W. Kluge gave an extraordinary gift of real estate to the University of Virginia Foundation for educational and charitable purposes. The 7,379-acre gift, located in southeastern Albemarle County, comprised 11 farms and estates, including historic Morven Farm. Purchased by Thomas Jefferson in 1795, Jefferson deeded the property in 1813 to David Higginbotham, a leading merchant at the nearby port of Milton on the Rivanna River. Higginbotham renamed it "Morven," Scottish for "ridge of hills." The Formal Gardens were restored in 1930 by landscape architect Annette Hoyt Flanders.
Admission: Advance ticket requests must be received by Monday, April 9. Please send a check for $15 per person made payable to HGW-Charlottesville and mail to:
Polly Talbott
Attn.: Morven Ticket Sales
219 Montvue Drive
Charlottesville, VA 22901
434-409-3098
Include your e-mail or phone number for confirmation. Reservations will be held at the entrance.
Group reservations should be made as one request. Tickets are also available at Morven the day of the tour. (No internet tickets are issued.)
All tickets are non-refundable. Inclement weather cancels this event.
Historic Garden Week in Virginia
Hosted by the Garden Club of Virginia
April 21-24, 2012
All on-Grounds events and tours are free.
Schedule at a Glance
April 21, 2012
| 10 a.m.-5 p.m | Tours of Morven Gardens |
April 24, 2012
| 10 a.m.-5 p.m. | Tours of Carr's Hill |
| 10 a.m.-5 p.m. | Tours of the Edgar Allan Poe Room |
| 10 a.m.-5 p.m. | Tours of Morea |
| 10 a.m. & 1 p.m. | Tours of The Gardens, U.Va. |
| 2 p.m. | Harrison Institute Special Presentation |