UVA Observatory Hill: Jefferson’s Water Resource for the Academical Village

Join Lifetime Learning for an afternoon of exploring the history of UVA’s Observatory Hill and its under-recognized role as a vital water resource. Garth Anderson, Facility Historian in UVA’s Facilities Management, will talk about the history of Thomas Jefferson’s original purchase of the ‘mountain’ parcel to build and sustain the Academical Village. Nancy Takahashi, Associate Professor Emerita in UVA’s Landscape Architecture Department, will explore how UVA’s water resources have been managed and developed over time in areas like Meadow Creek, The Dell, Nameless Field, and the RWSA’s Water Treatment plant.

After lunch, we will tour Observatory Hill sites with our UVA experts. Our walking tour will include the original reservoir, a spring, a geological site, and the water treatment plant.

Speaker Biographies

Nancy Takahashi, Professor Emerita, Landscape Architecture, School of Architecture, University of Virginia

Nancy Takahashi is an Associate Professor Emerita in the Landscape Architecture department at the School of Architecture at the University of Virginia. Takahashi’s many research interests include exploring the complex interwoven forces of sea level rise and rapid urbanization impacting coastal African cities in Ghana, with a focus on preserving a community’s cultural identity embedded in sacred sites and landscapes that are often destroyed by these forces of change. Relevant to this program, she has also researched the history and resources of the western tract of the UVA Grounds called Mount Jefferson or Observatory Hill. Takahashi and research students have discovered sites and histories that are leading to a broader understanding of the hill’s sustaining role in the history of the University.

Garth Anderson, Facility Historian in Facilities Management at the University of Virginia, has excelled in the field of education, specializing in cultural and architectural history for almost five decades. Since 1996, Anderson has worked alongside other faculty members to create coursework for students and served in the University President’s Commission for various sociocultural topics.

Event Details