Creed Taylor
Creed Taylor was a lawyer and judge who helped establish Virginia's first proprietary law school in Cumberland, Virginia. From this, we can ascertain that he was interested in education, so it would make sense that he is one of the people responsible for helping create the University of Virginia.Some of his papers can be found in the UVA Special Collections Library. https://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaxtf/view?docId=uva-sc/viu00025.xml
in short, to be developed by time, as those who come after us shall find expedient. They will be more advanced than we are, in science and in useful arts, and will know best what will suit the circumstances of their day.
This is interesting because these lines make the establishment of the university flexible and up for interpretation, much like the later written Constitution. This shows Jefferson understood the need to make clear that things can change. This also reminds me of the discussion we had in our engagement discussion about how you cannot tell for sure if you are advancing in art or science. I do appreciate Jefferson's optimism regarding the future of society.
Some of these have rendered the elements themselves subservient to the purposes of man, have harnessed them to the yoke of his labours, and effected the great blessings of moderating his own, of accomplishing what was beyond his feeble force, & of extending the comforts of life to a much enlarg[ed] circle, to those who had before known it’s necessaries only.
In this sentence, the writers of the report argue in support of a university. They characterize learned men as God-like, writing that they "rendered the elements themselves subservient to... man" and "extending the comforts of life to... those who had before knows it's necessaries only." With this, they associate education with great power, making it seem a necessity for a flourishing culture. Although his diction is a bit dramatic, it is nonetheless a compelling argument in favor of the school.
Botany
It makes sense that botany was one of the original "branches of learning" offered at UVA, as it reflects the state's history as a primarily agricultural society. Thomas Jefferson is quoted as having told George Washington, "Agriculture is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals, and happiness." . Jefferson held strong beliefs in the importance of an agrarian economy. UVA now offers biology and environmental science classes in the place of botany, which reflects Virginia's evolution to an industrialized state.