University of Virginia - Corks and Curls Yearbook (Charlottesville, VA)

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18 Traditional Trivia Thomas Jeffersonis self-contained Academical Village began with the establishment of Central College near the early 19th century city of Charlottesville. In 1816 when Mr. Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe planned the College, they hoped it would expand into something more significant than a local educational institution. A charter was soon secured from the General Assembly, and a site was purchased iCentral Collegei. Mr. Jefferson then drafted his plans for the Academical Village - a small and separate lodge tpevilioni for each professorship, with only a hall below for his class, and two chambers above for himself; these lodges to be joined by barracks for a certain portion of the students, opening into a covered way to give a dry communication between all the parts, the Whole of these arranged around an open square of grass and trees. What we wishf Mr. Jefferson said, is that these pavilions, as they show themselves above the dormitories, shall be models of taste and good architecture, and of a variety of appearance, no two alike, so as to serve as specimens for architectural lecture. Work was immediately started on one of the lodges tnow the Colonnade Clubi. In 1817 the General Assembly approved the plan for the establishment of a state university and appointed a commission with Mr. Jefferson as president. When Central College offered its assets, the General Assembly, in 1819, chartered the University tat its present sitei as the state university. In 1820 additional land was acquired and appropriations were sought from the General Assembly to complete the buildings. Sixty-eight students arrived for the opening of classes on March 7, 1825; a total of 123 entered between then and the end of the first session, and the average number for the first 17 years was 191. Before Mr. Jeffersonis death on July 4, 1826, the Rotunda was completed. This building, which served as the general library of the University until 1938, was the last building designed by Mr. Jefferson. Patterned after the Pantheon in Rome, the Rotunda soon became the central focus of the University. Mr. Jeffersonis Pet stands now as it did then at the northern most end of the Lawn. With three floors, the Rotunda then housed the library, a planetarium, lecture rooms, and a chemistry lab. Another main feature of Mr. Jeffersonis original uAcademical Village is the serpentine walls which enclose the gardens behind the Pavilions. These walls were chosen by Mr. Jefferson because of their aesthetic and functional values e shadow effects during certain hours of the day and the strengthening curves of the walls. The enclosed gardens were kept up by the professors' families until 1948. Unfinished at Mr. Jefferson's death, the Anatomical Theater was one of the last of the Jeffersonian buildings to be started and the only University building designed by Mr. Jefferson to have been demolished. In 1938, it was torn down to make way for Alderman Library. In 1817 the University purchased Monroe Hill which is named for its first occupant, James Monroe. Mr. Jefferson originally hoped to convert the house into an observatory but instead the University Proctor resided icont. pg. 23i .7 i..- -a, ll! Innnladlsvltiill ., --I--.- -e, ':$mas