Third- and fourth-year history majors with prior coursework in relevant fields (such as Virginia, Southern, African American, and U.S. Labor history) are invited to join a collaborative research project on U.Va.’s Morven Farm in Albemarle County while participating in a weekly, multidisciplinary seminar on the theme of ecosystem services.  (Our class is based on the premise that Morven’s landscape provides a cultural service as a site of history and memory.)

The historical component of the class (2 hours per week) will focus on scholarly debates, key concepts, and research methodologies at the local, regional, national, and international levels.  Students will receive hands-on training in archival research, interpretation of evidence, and presentation of findings.  

The ecosystem services component of the class (1 hour per week) will consist of lectures and presentations by scholars in various fields – history, landscape architecture, environmental sciences, anthropology, etc.

Students with pre-approved research projects may work independently while participating in weekly sessions and completing common readings; those without pre-approved projects are expected to work on a collaborative research project to be defined over the first several weeks of class.

Course requirements include regular attendance and active participation in the Monday classes/workshops; completion of short reading responses and weekly research assignments; and timely submission of proposals, drafts, and final research reports (details TBA).

COMMON READINGS

Primary Sources

1. •Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia (1781-85)
   

2. •Frederick Law Olmsted, The Cotton Kingdom (1852), Ch. 3, “Virginia [Collab]
   

Secondary Sources

1. •University of Virginia Foundation. Morven Project: Research, Reports, and Press”
   

2. •Anthony S. Parent, Jr., Foul Means: The Formation of a Slave Society in Virginia, 1660-1740, Ch. 1, “The Landgrab” [Collab]
   

3. •Rhys Isaac. The Transformation of Virginia, 1740-1790, Ch.1. [Collab]
   

4. •Anthony E. Kaye, Joining Places: Slave Neighborhoods in the Old South, Ch. 1, “Neighborhoods” (Collab)
   

SCHEDULE

JAN 25: Welcome/Introductions

Reading: Morven Project Research, Reports, and Press

Morven Seminar: Ecosystems Services Policy:  Jon Cannon (UVA Law), Brad Williams (Virginia Forestry), Buck Kline (Virginia Forestry)

FEB 1 The Land Grab (17th C.)

Discussion: How did Virginia’s planter class, in the course of one generation, vanquish the native population and engross the best lands?

Reading: Parent, Foul Means, Ch. 1, “The Landgrab”

Morven Seminar: Morven/Real Estate: Tim Rose (UVA Alumni Foundation), Stewart Gamage (UVA Alumni Foundation), George Overstreet (Commerce School)

FEB 8: The Transformation of Virginia (18th C)

Discussion: What meanings did the 18th c. inhabitants of Virginia attach to the landscape?

Reading: Rhys Isaac, Transformation of Virginia, Ch. 1, “Overview of the Landscape”

Morven Seminar: Ecosystems Science: Hank Shugart (Environmental Science)

FEB 15 - A Revolutionary Agenda (1780s-1820s)

Independent Research: TJ-Short writings regarding transformation of an economy/society based on slavery into one based on free labor

Reading:
- Selections from Notes on State of Virginia, Queries 14 (“Laws”) and 18 (“Manners”)

1. -Selections from Jefferson-Short Correspondence (Google Docs)
   

Morven Seminar: Perception of Landscape, Pyschological-Neurological Benefits. Kristina Hill (Landscape Architecture)

FEB 22: The Plantation Generation (Antebellum/Civil War Era)

4993: Culture and Cultivation: Olmsted’s Tour of Virginia
Reading: Frederick Law Olmsted, The Cotton Kingdom, Chs. 3 and 4, “Virginia”

Reports on Independent Research  Due

Seminar: Landscape History: Scot French (Center for Digital History), Jeff Hantman (Department of Anthropology)

MARCH 1: Mapping the Social Worlds of Morven (Antebellum/Post-Emancipation)

4993: Neighborhoods: Mapping the Social Connections Between Plantations

Reading: Anthony Kaye, Joining Places: Slave Neighborhoods in the Old South, Ch. 1, “Neighborhoods”

Common: Design for Research Infrastructure:  Bill Sherman (Architecture)

MARCH 8

SPRING BREAK - no class

MARCH 15

Common: Student Group Project Presentations at Morven:  5 minutes each

MARCH 22

4993: Independent Study and Group Project Workshops

Common: Student Groups Exchange and Collaboration A:  Moderator: Kristina Hill

MARCH 29

4993: Independent Study and Group Project Workshops

Common: Student Groups B:  Moderator: Jon Cannon

APRIL 5

4993: Independent Study and Group Project Workshops

Common: Student Groups C:  Moderator: George Overstreet

APRIL 12

4993: Independent Study and Group Project Workshops

Common: Student Groups D:  Moderator: Bill Sherman

APRIL 19

4993 and Common: Work on Final Papers

APRIL 26

4993 and Common: Work on Final Papers

MAY 3
5:00: Papers Due

MAY 13

Public Presentation at Morven in Finals Time Slot