Fairfield Foundation Public Archaeology Programs and Camps
Center for Archaeology, Preservation and Education (CAPE), 6783 Main St, Gloucester, VA 23061
About
Fairfield Foundation Public Archaeology Programs and Camps include lab nights, dig days, archaeology camps, summer archaeology camps, workshops that combine archaeology and architectural conservation, and public education programs at parks and historic sites. These programs take place at multiple Fairfield Foundation properties and focus on hands-on archaeology, preservation, and education activities within Virginia’s Middle Peninsula and surrounding areas.
• Schedule: The Center for Archaeology, Preservation and Education (CAPE) grounds are always open to the public, with the CAPE open for tours on Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and lab nights held on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays from 6–9 p.m.
Established in 2000, the Fairfield Foundation operates public archaeology programs and camps as part of its mission to promote and involve the public in hands-on archaeology, preservation, and education activities within Virginia’s Middle Peninsula and surrounding areas. The organization is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit and operates five properties in Gloucester County that support these programs, including Fairfield Archaeology Park, Timberneck House at Machicomoco, Edge Hill Texaco (the C.A.P.E.), Rosewell Ruins and Visitor Center, and the Walter Reed birthplace. The Fairfield Archaeology Park at the former Fairfield Plantation is the cornerstone of its outreach programs, and the CAPE is housed in the preserved 1930 Edge Hill Service Station, which has been accurately restored as an example of the sensitive reuse of a historic structure. The Fairfield Foundation also runs an internship program that introduces students from across the country to archaeological and historical research, public outreach, and cultural resource stewardship.
The Fairfield Foundation’s leadership and staff for these programs include President Thomas Karow, Vice President bobbi hatton, Secretary Janet Brown, Treasurer Pattie Sobieski, Board Members Chris Doyel, Lynn Lewis, Kasey Molloy, Elizabeth Wood Santini, Marilyn South, and William Weaver, Co-Directors Dr. David Brown and Thane Harpole, Senior Staff Archaeologist Anna Rhodes, Development Officer Sara Lewis, Public Outreach Coordinator Rachel Boyd, Preservation Program Coordinator Kenneth Tappan, and Donor Relations Officer and Project Manager Lori Jackson Black. The foundation works with groups such as the Gloucester Historical Society, Gloucester Genealogical Society of Virginia, the Rosewell Foundation, the Gloucester Preservation Foundation, the Middle Peninsula Chapter of the Archeological Society of Virginia, the Mathews County Historical Society, the Middlesex Historical Society and Museum, York County’s New Quarter Park, the Tidewater Virginia Historical Society, and many other organizations to support the study, recognition, and preservation of regional history. It has established educational programs with public and private schools in Gloucester, Mathews, Middlesex, and King William Counties, as well as neighboring cities and counties across the Middle Peninsula and beyond, and also works with scouting groups, civic organizations, and historical societies.
Last updated July 18, 2026.
• Schedule: The Center for Archaeology, Preservation and Education (CAPE) grounds are always open to the public, with the CAPE open for tours on Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and lab nights held on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays from 6–9 p.m.
Established in 2000, the Fairfield Foundation operates public archaeology programs and camps as part of its mission to promote and involve the public in hands-on archaeology, preservation, and education activities within Virginia’s Middle Peninsula and surrounding areas. The organization is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit and operates five properties in Gloucester County that support these programs, including Fairfield Archaeology Park, Timberneck House at Machicomoco, Edge Hill Texaco (the C.A.P.E.), Rosewell Ruins and Visitor Center, and the Walter Reed birthplace. The Fairfield Archaeology Park at the former Fairfield Plantation is the cornerstone of its outreach programs, and the CAPE is housed in the preserved 1930 Edge Hill Service Station, which has been accurately restored as an example of the sensitive reuse of a historic structure. The Fairfield Foundation also runs an internship program that introduces students from across the country to archaeological and historical research, public outreach, and cultural resource stewardship.
The Fairfield Foundation’s leadership and staff for these programs include President Thomas Karow, Vice President bobbi hatton, Secretary Janet Brown, Treasurer Pattie Sobieski, Board Members Chris Doyel, Lynn Lewis, Kasey Molloy, Elizabeth Wood Santini, Marilyn South, and William Weaver, Co-Directors Dr. David Brown and Thane Harpole, Senior Staff Archaeologist Anna Rhodes, Development Officer Sara Lewis, Public Outreach Coordinator Rachel Boyd, Preservation Program Coordinator Kenneth Tappan, and Donor Relations Officer and Project Manager Lori Jackson Black. The foundation works with groups such as the Gloucester Historical Society, Gloucester Genealogical Society of Virginia, the Rosewell Foundation, the Gloucester Preservation Foundation, the Middle Peninsula Chapter of the Archeological Society of Virginia, the Mathews County Historical Society, the Middlesex Historical Society and Museum, York County’s New Quarter Park, the Tidewater Virginia Historical Society, and many other organizations to support the study, recognition, and preservation of regional history. It has established educational programs with public and private schools in Gloucester, Mathews, Middlesex, and King William Counties, as well as neighboring cities and counties across the Middle Peninsula and beyond, and also works with scouting groups, civic organizations, and historical societies.
Last updated July 18, 2026.
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