Keswick, Virginia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Keswick
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Keswick Post Office
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Location of the Keswick CDP within the Albemarle county
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 Keswick
Location in Virginia
Keswick
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Virginia |
| County | Albemarle |
| Elevation | 449 ft (137 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 321 |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| FIPS code | 51-42216 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2807398 |
Keswick is a small community in Albemarle County, Virginia, United States. It is located about six miles east of the city of Charlottesville. Keswick is known as a census-designated place, which means it's an area that the government counts for population, but it's not an officially incorporated town or city.
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Life in Keswick
Keswick is mostly a place where people live. It doesn't have many businesses or a main downtown area. You can find different types of homes here, from large farms and big estates to regular houses.
Because many of the land areas in Keswick are quite large, the community has not been heavily developed. This means it still has a lot of its natural beauty, including great views of the Southwest Mountains. People often say that driving through Keswick is one of the most beautiful drives in America.
Many of the large estates in Keswick were once plantations way back in the 1700s. Not much new building happened in Keswick until the 1990s. Even now, any new development is carefully checked by officials in Albemarle County to protect the area's natural environment.
Schools and Transportation
Keswick is home to a couple of special schools. Oakland School is a boarding and day school for children who have learning disabilities. The Keswick School is another boarding school that helps students with social skills and emotional challenges.
A CSX freight train line runs through the community. This line is used for carrying goods, not passengers.
Nearby Areas
The area that uses the Keswick postal code is actually much larger than Keswick itself. It stretches north towards Gordonsville and west towards Stony Point. This postal area includes smaller communities that don't have their own post offices, such as Cash Corner, Cismont, Lindsay, Stony Point, Boyd Tavern, Cobham, Whitlock, and Rosena.
Some important historical places in the Keswick area are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. These include East Belmont, Limestone, and the Southwest Mountains Rural Historic District.
Keswick Hunt Club
The Keswick Hunt Club was started in 1896 and officially recognized in 1903. It has about 200 members, including individuals and families. The club has around 60 hounds that hunt on land in Albemarle, Louisa, Madison, and Orange counties.
Each year, the club gives a special award called the "Barrister" award. This award honors an outstanding foxhound. It's named after a famous dog hound from Keswick that was known for its great sense of smell and loud bark.
A special tradition started in 1929 by John Stewart, M.F.H. (Master of Fox Hounds). It's called the Thanksgiving Blessing of the Hounds Service. This event takes place in the yard of Grace Episcopal Church (Keswick, Virginia). Hounds, horses, and riders gather for a religious service with prayers and hymns. After the service, they go on a hunt. Any money collected at the service is given to charity.
Keswick in Movies
The old Keswick train station was featured in the 1956 movie Giant. This train station is no longer used for trains; it's now part of the Little Keswick School and serves as a dining hall. A farm called Belmont (which is different from East Belmont) was also used in the movie. The parts of the film that were supposed to be set in Maryland were actually filmed at these locations in Keswick.
