The Fairfield Foundation
The Fairfield Foundation is dedicated to involving the community in efforts to discover and preserve local history. They offer hands-on activities to people of all ages who want to experience an archaeological dig or help to preserve and restore historic structures. Outreach programs include activities such as public dig days, preservation workshops, summer camps and cemetery clean-ups. They also host public lab nights every Tuesday at the Center for Archaeology, Preservation and Education in Gloucester Courthouse.
Fairfield offers educational programming to schools across Virginia’s Middle Peninsula. The goal is to provide place-based learning experiences that integrate archaeology into class curriculum and demonstrate how subjects like math, science, history, and geography are applied in the field. The foundation is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization founded in 2000. They operate five properties in Gloucester County: Fairfield Archaeology Park, Timberneck House at Machicomoco, Edge Hill Texaco (the C.A.P.E.), Rosewell Ruins and Visitor Center, and Walter Reed birthplace.
Project Leaders
Dr. David A. Brown | Co-Director, The Fairfield Foundation
David bridges scholarship with real-world preservation. As co-director of the Fairfield Foundation, he leads archaeological research and preservation projects across eastern Virginia. Through DATA Investigations, he collaborates with municipalities, nonprofits, and private partners to ensure historic spaces are studied with responsibility and care.
What many don’t see is his passion for community education. When he’s not in the field, David teaches public history and preservation at William & Mary, helping the next generation understand why our past matters. This includes the discoveries beneath Rosewell’s soil: the lives, labor, and stories of the people who once lived and worked on the land.
Thane Harpole | Co-Director, The Fairfield Foundation
Thane has dedicated 25 years to uncovering Virginia’s layered past. With degrees in Anthropology and History from William & Mary, he has worked at Mount Vernon, co-founded the Werowocomoco Research Group, and directed fieldwork across the Middle Peninsula. As president of the Middle Peninsula Chapter of the Archeological Society of Virginia, Thane champions public archaeology - inviting volunteers, students, and community members into the process. He guides them through the broader narrative: what Rosewell teaches us, how research evolves, and how each of us can play a part in preserving this history. His work reminds us that the story of Rosewell is not just academic; it’s personal, local, and alive.
Instructor
Kenneth Tappan | Historic Masonry Specialist
For 15 years, Kenneth has lived and breathed 18th-century building traditions. After graduating with a History degree from Christopher Newport University, he stepped directly into the Historic Masonry Program at Colonial Williamsburg, where he helped recreate and restore centuries-old structures using the same tools and techniques that craftsmen used in the 1700s. Whether he’s firing lime in an outdoor kiln or reconstructing a wall by hand, Kenneth brings a deep respect for the labor, both skilled and enslaved, that shaped early America.