The Summer of the Rock

There are few places more beautiful than Virginia in the summertime.  I swear, the trees here are greener than anywhere else on Earth.  And in Virginia, the summer sun shines with real gold.

As a Master of Urban and Environmental Planning candidate at the University of Virginia, I’m required to complete an internship during the summer between my first and second years.  The guidelines on what sorts of internships you can choose from are pretty broad, and so these internships vary widely from student to student.

My internship was particularly unusual…and, I must add, particularly awesome.  I spent this past summer working at the Virginia Division of Geology and Mineral Resources office here in Charlottesville, researching and creating an exhibit for the Scottsville History Museum.  Scottsville is a charming little town, resting on the shores of the James River about twenty miles south of Charlottesville, and just brimming with history.

Scottsville is located on a large river bend, known locally as the Horseshoe Bend of the James River.  Scottsville’s placement on the Horseshoe Bend affords the town the status of the northernmost point on the James River.  Because of the town’s favorable geographic position, Scottsville became one of the most important ports on the James River in the mid-19th century, during the glory days of the James River and Kanawha Canal.

It is no secret that the Horseshoe Bend was critical to Scottsville’s economic success.  But why does the river bend in the first place? It is this question that my exhibit seeks to answer through an exploration of the relationships between the geology of the Scottsville area and the history of the town.

In the process of creating the exhibit, I lived the life of a geologist.  To those of you who are considering a career in the earth sciences, hear this: this life rocks.  (Alas, it’s also a life fraught with geology puns.)  I spent a good deal of my summer reading scientific journals and honing my ArcGIS skills at the state geology office.  But I also was able to do some “field work,” which is just a fancy term for “playtime.”

In my search for geological answers to the reasons for the Horseshoe Bend’s existence, I bushwhacked through forests, pulled stickers out of my clothes, and frolicked shamelessly in the James River.  And of course, I immersed myself in the warm embrace of a Virginia summer.

If you’re thirsty for an answer as to why the river bends, come on down to the Scottsville Museum this spring.  This exhibit will rock your world.