The history of the University of Virginia opens with its conception by Thomas Jefferson at the beginning of the early 19th century. The university was chartered in 1819, and classes commenced in 1825.
1856 lithograph of the Academical Village (Rotunda, Pavilions, and the Lawn)
Father of the University of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson was the first and only president of the United States to found an institution of higher learning.
The non-denominational chapel near the Rotunda of the university was established in 1890, beyond the original scope of Jefferson's plans.
Inside the UVA Chapel
The University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia had numerous fraternities and sororities. Since the establishment of several social fraternities in the 1850s, the university's student organiza
Madison Bowl at the University of Virginia is surrounded by several Greek houses. Visible from left to right are Phi Kappa Psi, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, St. Anthony Hall, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Zeta Tau Alpha, and St. Elmo Hall.
Members of the Jefferson Society, a university debating society, stand in front of the Rotunda.
Chi Omega house
Old Kappa Sigma house