Morven Park and its lovely grounds in Leesburg, Virginia are familiar to many foxhunters. The former estate of the late Governor Westmoreland Davis has been home for many years to the Virginia Foxhound Show, meets of the Loudoun West Hunt, and the Morven Park Steeplechases.
The mansion has recently been refurbished—a major project taking several years to complete—and Morven Park’s Board of Trustees are now grappling with formulating a vision for the future of the 1200-acre estate. A number of strategies have been identified with the goal of making it more accessible and relevant to a broader public.
The expanded mission is expected to require significant fund raising to implement needed improvements, and decisions are being made as to which facilities and activities will survive and which will be discontinued.
One casualty of the plan, according to Margaret Morton’s article in Leesburg Today, will be the Morven Park Steeplechase Races. The other equestrian facilities, however, will be improved for dressage, carriage driving, trail riding, eventing, show jumping, and therapeutic riding.
“The annual Memorial Day weekend Virginia Foxhound Club show, the largest hound show in the world, will not be affected,” according to the article.
Posted December 27, 2011
