The GCV 2009 Fellowship
Morven Park, Leesburg, Virginia
Research and document the grounds of Morven Park in Leesburg, Virginia. Governor Thomas Swann of Maryland purchased Morven Park in the 1830s and it remained in his family until 1898. The mansion evolved from a fieldstone farmhouse in 1781 to its present turn-of-the-century appearance. In 1858, Governor Swann’s son, Thomas Swann, Jr., commissioned a design for the addition of four towers with wide, overhanging eaves that gave the house the appearance of an Italian villa. None of the towers now exist and research to date offers conflicting information about which towers were built. Governor and Mrs. Westmoreland Davis planned and planted the boxwood garden that is almost 3 acres in size after they purchased the property in 1903. Prior to their tenure, no documented formal garden existed on the property. Today the grounds at Morven Park include over 1,000 acres of park, lawns, fields, and wooded areas, along with the boxwood gardens. Measured drawings and a written report will be produced to contribute to an archive of historic landscapes of Virginia.