Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Collection is open to research.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Charles A. Veatch papers, Collection #C0138, Special Collections and Archives, George Mason University.

Acquisition Information

Collection donated by Charles Veatch in 1999-2004.

Processing Information

Processed by Special Collections and Archives staff. EAD markup completed by Eron Ackerman and Jordan Patty in March 2009.

Biographical Information

Charles A. Veatch was born in 1942 in Washington, DC. He obtained his B.S. in Finance from the University of Virginia in 1964. During the summer of 1964, he began working for Palindrome Corporation under Robert E. Simon, the developer of Reston, Virginia, and in 1968 moved to Reston with his wife and two children. Veatch obtained his real estate license in 1960, while still a student at UVA. He started his own real estate development and consulting firm, Environmental Concepts, Inc., in 1970. He soon developed many residential and commercial projects throughout Northern Virginia, including ones in Reston.

For decades, Veatch has been an avid participant in Reston community organizations. During the early days of Reston, he was a founding member of the Reston Lions Club and the Reston Board of Commerce. He is currently a member of numerous nonprofit boards including Planned Community Archives, Reston Historic Trust, Greater Reston Arts Center, Natures Best Foundation, The Potomac Conservancy, and Fairfax County Parks Foundation. Furthermore, he has many other affiliations with nonprofit organizations such as the Friends of Shenandoah River, Friends of North Fork, and The French and Indian War Foundation. Veatch has been honored with many awards for his extensive community service. In 1998 he was named the Best of Reston Honoree, and in 2004 he was chosen as the Fairfax County Citizen of the Year.

As a fly fisherman and lover of nature, Veatch began photographing the scenes around him. Now a passionate and accomplished photographer, Veatch published The Nature of Reston in 1999, a book of his photography of natural areas of Reston. Profits from this book, now in its second printing, have gone towards the construction of a Nature House in Reston. Currently, Charles Veatch is the president of The Charles A. Veatch Company. He also devotes his time to many nonprofit organizations concerned with nature and the environment.

Scope and Content

Collection contains materials pertaining to the history and development of Reston, Virginia. Types of materials include: newspaper and magazine clippings pertaining to Reston, photographs and negatives of structures in Reston, reports regarding Reston planning issues, video recordings, promotional materials regarding Reston attractions such as Reston Town Center, records pertaining to Planned Community Archives, Inc. and other materials.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged according to subject.

Related Material

Special Collections and Archives also holds many other personal and organizational collections on the history and development of Reston, Virginia.

Index Terms

Persons:

• Veatch, Charles A., 1942-

Corporate Names:

• Reston Land Corporation.

Geographical Names:

• Reston (Va.)

Subjects:

• Housing--Virginia--Reston.
• Planned communities--Virginia--Reston.

Document Types:

• Negatives.
• Photographic prints.
• Video recordings.

Adjunct Descriptive Data