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Both academic and professional archaeologists have realized the need to include the public in their work, whether it be volunteers in the field and/or laboratory, or outreach programs that aim to engage the public in new and innovative ways. Ten excavations were conducted at Graeme Park from 1958 to 1997, yet none of the projects utilized a Public Archaeology approach in the methodology. Although some of the data was used to reconstruct outbuildings and features as well as supplement the way the site is presented to the public, no efforts were made to directly include the staff, volunteers, and/or visitors. There are three glaring reasons as to why the archaeology and site interpretation have lacked synergism over the last fifty years. The first issue is a dearth of academically driven research. The majority of excavations were under the management of the Pennsylvania Historical & Museums Commission; Public Archaeology was not a goal of the state department given limited time and finances. Secondly, the budget of the PHMC has been drastically cut and historic sites across the state have been shut down or forced to function on very limited budgets. This has resulted in the creation of anachronistic or irrelevant programming that brings in revenue, but veer from the mission statement of Graeme Park. Finally, as a result of the budget cuts, the historic site lacks a full-time staff member to oversee programs and archaeological projects. I propose a plan for future site interpretation that brings together archaeology and historic site interpretation, citing Stenton House as an example of successful integration between the two. / Anthropology

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The landscape of James A. Garfield’s Mentor, Ohio home (now preserved at James A. Garfield National Historic Site) contains multiple layers of historical meanings and values. The landscape as portrayed in political biographies, political cartoons, and other ephemera during Garfield’s 1880 presidential campaign reveals the existence of the dual cultural values of agrarian tradition and agricultural progress in the late nineteenth century. Although Garfield did not depend on farming exclusively for his livelihood, he, like many agriculturalists of this era participated in a process of mediation between these dual values. The function of the landscape of Garfield’s farm between 1876 and 1880 is a reflection of this process of mediation. After President Garfield’s assassination in 1881, his wife and children returned to their Mentor home. Between 1885 and c. 1905, Garfield’s widow Lucretia made numerous changes to the agricultural landscape, facilitating the evolution of the home from farm to country estate. Despite the rich history of this landscape, its cultural complexity and evolution over time makes it difficult to interpret for public audiences. Additionally, the landscape is currently interpreted exclusively through indoor museum exhibits and outdoor wayside panels, two formats with severe limitations. I propose the integration of deep mapping into interpretation at James A. Garfield National historic site in order to more effectively represent the multi-layered qualities of its historic landscape.