Department of Archaeology & Landscape Restoration
ARCHAEOLOGY AT MONTPELIER
Archaeological Research
Professional Development
Public Archaeology
Cultural Resource Management
The Montpelier Archaeology Department aims to discover, preserve, and interpret Montpelier’s Madison-era landscape and other cultural and archaeological resources through cutting edge archaeological methods and research, professional development, public engagement, and citizen science.
This is achieved through public excavation programs, descendant community engagement, professional training for future and current archaeologists through our field school and internship program, and the regular dissemination of our archaeological research to the public and fellow researchers.
Archaeology Projects and Resources
The Montpelier Archaeology Department undertakes a variety of different projects at Montpelier relating to archaeological research, staff development and training, and public programming. Our staff is actively publishing, sharing our data and work, and contributing to professional conferences. To learn more, access different resources such as our technical reports, and visit online exhibits, use the buttons to the right.
Digging Deeper Blog
Our blog is where you can get a behind the scenes look at all of our projects and research. This is a place for those of you who want to take a Deeper Dive into the day-to-day work of an archaeologist!
Dig With Us!
Work alongside our staff through the LEARN Archaeology Expedition Program! No experience necessary. Learn more by clicking below!
The Team
Matthew Reeves, PhD
Director of Archaeology and Landscape Restoration
Matt Reeves has been the Director of Archaeology since 2000. Over the past two decades, Matt’s research has focused on plantation life and Civil War encampments with a focus on site of the African Diaspora. For the past three decades, Matt’s focus in public archaeology has centered on citizen science in particular to working with descendant communities and metal detectorists. He received his doctorate from Syracuse University, and currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the Society for Historical Archaeology and the Florida Public Archaeology Network.
Terry P. Brock, PhD
Assistant Director of Archaeology
Terry Brock has served in the archaeology department since 2014. He directs the field excavations at Montpelier, and has research interests in publicly engaged scholarship, plantation archaeology, and digital cultural heritage. Terry received his PhD in Anthropology from Michigan State University, was a co-founder of RVA Archaeology, and sits on the Board of Directors for Archaeology in the Community.
Mary Furlong-Minkoff, PhD
Curator of Archaeological Collections
Mary Furlong Minkoff joined Montpelier in 2015, and oversees the archaeology laboratory and archaeological collections. Her research interests focus civically engaged archaeology, African American archaeology and sensory archaeology. She received her PhD from University of Maryland in Anthropology, and her MA in Historical Archaeology from the University of West Florida. Prior to her time at Montpelier, Mary has worked across the Eastern Seaboard and with the National Parks Service.
Christopher Pasch
Archaeology Crew Chief
Chris Pasch has worked at Montpelier since 2017. He received his BA in History and English Literature at St. Mary’s College of Maryland, and completed his MA in Historical Archaeology at the University of Leicester in 2020. He previously worked at Historic St. Mary’s City as an archaeologist and crew chief.
Hannah James
Archaeology Technician
Hannah James attended the College of Charleston, earning Bachelor’s degrees in Archaeology and Anthropology. After completing her field school at Montpelier in 2016, she returned as an Archaeology Intern for the summer of 2018, and again for 2019-2020. She has also interned at Charles Towne Landing Historical site, and is working on completing her certificate in Geographic Information Systems at University of Richmond.
Taylor Brown
Archaeology Technician
Taylor Brown attended the Montpelier field school in 2019, and served as an Archaeology Intern from 2019-2020. She received her BA in Anthropology and Archaeology from Saint Mary’s College of California. She has previous experience as an underwater archaeologist, having worked on shipwreck sites in Florida and the Caribbean. Her research interests include the archaeology of sex and gender, feminist archaeology, and economic archaeology.
Sarah-Lee Hall
Archaeology Programs Coordinator
Sarah Lee also works at an interpreter at the main house for Montpelier’s Education and Visitor Services Department.t A Virginia native, Sarah Lee enjoys delving into the early history of the state and is a fan of any kind of folklore. She studied history at James Madison University.
Dennis Bjorklund
Metal Detector Technician
Dennis Bjorklund began working at Montpelier in 2014 after attending a metal detecting expedition. He has been metal detecting since 1985, including working as an Unexploded Ordinance Detection technician for the US Military. He also has a background in surveying. He oversees and conducts the metal detector survey at Montpelier.
Lance Crosby
Metal Detector Technician
Lance Crosby has over thirty years of metal detecting experience in Virginia. Lance began working for the archaeology department in 2008 and has logged well over 3000 historic hits (pre 1900 in era) and located two dozen Civil War or antebellum sites across the property.