Located at this site were the vineyards, a fermentation cellar, and the orchards of the early agricultural experiment station. Established by Professor William Alwood, they included over 300 types of European and American varieties of grapes, apples, peaches, and other fruits. Professor Alwood helped establish Virginia’s wine industry prior to prohibition. He traveled all over Europe in the early 1900s to conduct his pioneer research on fermentation and grape culture and collect new varieties to expand the orchards and vineyards here on campus. Alwood was famous for his fruit culture work. He is noted for saving the Virginia fruit industry after an invasive insect was discovered in Albemarle County in 1892. In 1894, he was instrumental in starting the Virginia State Horticultural Society. After he left Virginia Tech in 1904, he was appointed head of the enology department of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In 1907, he was elected president of the International Congress of Viticulture, and the French government awarded him the prestigious Grand Cross of Officer du Merite Agricole for his achievements. In 1966, horticulturalists at Virginia Tech named a new variety of table grape after him - the Alwood grape.

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