Jeffrey Kenyon and Museum Historic Research Center (MHRC) records

Jeffrey Loren Kenyon was born in Wausau, Wisconsin, April 3, 1948. He graduated from Alma College, Michigan (1970) with a B.A. in American History. He subsequently attended the University of Pennsylvania, receiving an M.A. (1971) and Ph.D. (1976) in American Civilization, with a specialization in American Culture (dissertation topic: The Archaeological and Educational Analysis of the Gorgas Industrial Mill Plantation).

Kenyon was a crew member and field supervisor at the Fort Michilimackinac Archaeological Project, Michigan (1969 and 1970), and at the Fort Stanwix Archaeological Project, New York (1971). Under sponsorship of the University of Pennsylvania and the National Park Service he served as field supervisor at the Franklin Court Archaeological Project, Philadelphia (1972), and he was director of the Monastery Project (Gorgas Mill Complex), Philadelphia (1974). Kenyon was director of the Education Department of the University of Pennsylvania Museum from 1972 to 1975, where he supervised school tours and curated exhibits within the museum, as well as "suitcase exhibits" throughout the state. He produced slide/talk programs and developed craft courses for elementary school children, as well as Project Practicum, introducing area high school students to native craftsmen from other countries. His teaching career at the University of Pennsylvania included courses in introductory American Civilization and Theory and Method for Historic Sites Archaeology. He also taught adult education courses in the archaeology of southeastern Pennsylvania at the Main Line School Night Association, Radnor.

From 1975 to 1976 Kenyon was director of the Museum Historic Research Center at the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania. In 1976 he started looking into career opportunities elsewhere, citing "the relative insecurity of doing contract work (in financial terms) with the Center." In January 1977 he left the University Museum to take up a position in Denver, Colorado. Further information regarding him is sparse. An article in the Christian Science Monitor, April 4, 1982, describes him as a Bureau of Reclamation archaeologist, working at the Windy Gap Archaeological Project, a prehistoric site northwest of Denver. Kenyon's death (SSDI) is listed as Jeff L. Kenyon, January 2, 2011, Ramsey, Minnesota.

Jeffrey Loren Kenyon was born in Wausau, Wisconsin, April 3, 1948. He graduated from Alma College, Michigan (1970) with a B.A. in American History. He subsequently attended the University of Pennsylvania, receiving an M.A. (1971) and Ph.D. (1976) in American Civilization, with a specialization in American Culture (dissertation topic: The Archaeological and Educational Analysis of the Gorgas Industrial Mill Plantation).

Kenyon was a crew member and field supervisor at the Fort Michilimackinac Archaeological Project, Michigan (1969 and 1970), and at the Fort Stanwix Archaeological Project, New York (1971). Under sponsorship of the University of Pennsylvania and the National Park Service he served as field supervisor at the Franklin Court Archaeological Project, Philadelphia (1972), and he was director of the Monastery Project (Gorgas Mill Complex), Philadelphia (1974). Kenyon was director of the Education Department of the University of Pennsylvania Museum from 1972 to 1975, where he supervised school tours and curated exhibits within the museum, as well as "suitcase exhibits" throughout the state. He produced slide/talk programs and developed craft courses for elementary school children, as well as Project Practicum, introducing area high school students to native craftsmen from other countries. His teaching career at the University of Pennsylvania included courses in introductory American Civilization and Theory and Method for Historic Sites Archaeology. He also taught adult education courses in the archaeology of southeastern Pennsylvania at the Main Line School Night Association, Radnor.

From 1975 to 1976 Kenyon was director of the Museum Historic Research Center at the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania. In 1976 he started looking into career opportunities elsewhere, citing "the relative insecurity of doing contract work (in financial terms) with the Center." In January 1977 he left the University Museum to take up a position in Denver, Colorado. Further information regarding him is sparse. An article in the Christian Science Monitor, April 4, 1982, describes him as a Bureau of Reclamation archaeologist, working at the Windy Gap Archaeological Project, a prehistoric site northwest of Denver. Kenyon's death (SSDI) is listed as Jeff L. Kenyon, January 2, 2011, Ramsey, Minnesota.

MHRC History

The Museum Historic Research Center (MHRC) was formed in January 1975 as a department of the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania, directed by historical archaeologist Jeffrey L. Kenyon. The purpose of the center was to conduct historical and archaeological projects on a contract basis. It was intended to be financially self-sufficient; all funds were to be raised by the director. Projects undertaken resulted from federal requirements of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and the National Environmental Preservation Act of 1969, preparation for the upcoming American Bicentennial in 1976, and by local historical societies requesting site evaluations and recommendations.

Projects included a feasibility study for Bartram's Garden, Philadelphia (1975); historical and feasibility research for Yellow Springs, Chester County, Pa. and excavation of its hospital structure (1974-1977); archaeological and historical evaluation of Stenton Barn, Philadelphia, as well as evaluation of electromagnetic sub-surface profiling at Stenton (1975-1977), excavation of the 1776 Franklin Square Powder Magazine (1976-1978), and consultation for the Jacobsburg Historical Society (1976-1977), Jacobsburg, Pa. The Center also undertook several historical and environmental impact contracts involving transportation and engineering projects in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. These projects were directed by Jeffrey L. Kenyon, assisted by [Thibaut and Helen Schenk], and often took advantage of Kenyon's students as archaeological field assistants. They all fell within the field of historical archaeology, understood here to encompass the period of European settlement. One exception was the Fort Hill Project (1975-1976), where a prehistoric Native American site in Somerset County, Pa. was excavated.

With the departure of Jeffrey Kenyon in January 1977, the Center became inactive. Reports continued to be written and published through 1977, but by 1978 MHRC had essentially ended its operation. A second attempt to provide historical archaeology on a contract basis was the Museum Institute for Conservation Archaeology (MICA), which began operation at the University Museum in 1979.

The Jeffrey Kenyon and Museum Historic Research Center (MHRC) records consist of 2.2 linear feet of textual and graphic material documenting some of the historical archaeology projects of Jeffrey L. Kenyon undertaken for the University Museum and MHRC. The collection contains administrative records as well as correspondence, field notes and reports, historical research, and graphic documentation of several projects, including several sets of slides. The series, after administration records, are arranged chronologically by project, including Franklin Court (1972), Yellow Springs (1974-1977), Fort Hill Project (1975-1976), Stenton Barn and 'radar' study (1975-1977), New Jersey studies: Landing Lane Bridge, Route 90, Rahway flood plain, and others (1976-1977), Jacobsburg, Pa. (1976-1977), and the Franklin Square Powder Mill (1976-1978).

The Franklin Court records are the only documents in this collection that predate MHRC. There are many Kenyon projects that predate the Center; some are referenced below in other Museum Archive collections. Likewise, there are several MHRC projects that are not documented in this collection, such as the Bartram's Garden feasibility study (1975). The Franklin Square Powder Magazine project is represented only by a handful of administrative records, as well as slides; there are no field notes or reports.

Individual projects are further described in the introductory notes for each series, which follow. See also: Gorgas Mill Complex records Museum Institute for Conservation Archaeology records Education Department records (for Kenyon)

An excellent introduction to the archaeology of many of the sites contained in this collection is The Buried Past: An Archaeological History of Philadelphia, by John L. Cotter, Daniel G. Roberts, and Michael Parrington (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1993). Topics include Franklin Court, Franklin Square Powder Magazine, Stenton, as well as MRHC sites not contained in this collection, such as Bartram's Garden.

Series

Administrative

The series includes personal correspondence of Jeffery Kenyon, mostly regarding employment, as well as general correspondence of the Museum Historic Research Center, including employment applications from students and others. Federal contracts from 1971-1973 describe agreements in force while the center was active. Letters of agreement include contracts with several organizations regarding MHRC projects, including the Bartram's Gardens project (1975) for which no other documentation exists in this collection. Financial records include ledgers and invoices for several projects. The Franklin Square Powder Magazine project (1976) is represented by a letter of agreement and some financial files in this series, otherwise only slides are extant, filed separately. Several files deal with a pilot project developed by the Interagency Archaeological Services of the National Park Service to study and determine the circumstances under which an archaeological field study must be performed pursuant to federal regulations. Administrative files pertaining to the various MHRC project that follow can be found both within this series, as well as within the series files that follow.

Franklin Court

Franklin Court, located at 322 Market Street, Philadelphia, was the home of Benjamin Franklin from 1763 until his death in 1790. Although Franklin himself was abroad during much of this period, the site was home also to his common law wife, Deborah Read Franklin, until her death in 1774, and later by Franklin's grandson, Benjamin Franklin Bache, for whom the elder Franklin built a printing press where Bache published the newspaper Aurora. The house was demolished in 1812. In 1974, in anticipation of the Bicentennial in 1976, the architectural firm of Venturi and Rauch was commissioned to develop the site, including a "ghost" structure of the house, an underground museum, and a recreation of the printing press. Several archaeological investigations have been undertaken since 1953 in the Franklin Court complex, notably by National Park Service archaeologists Bruce Powell and Jackson Moore. In 1972 the Franklin Court Archaeological Project was conducted by the University of Pennsylvania and the National Park Service, Jeffrey Kenyon, Field Supervisor. This project predates the creation of the Museum Historic Research Center. The series includes Kenyon's field notes and a field report, unattributed but probably written by Kenyon. There is little other documentation in the general literature regarding this project

Fort Hill

Fort Hill is a pre-Columbian archaeological site located near Confluence, Somerset County, Pa. The site included two communities: Fort Hill I, dated to about AD 1275, and Fort Hill II, from about AD 1300. The complex contained a central plaza with a post around which the community performed ceremonies and rituals. The site was partially excavated by a Works Projects Administration work relief team from 1939 to 1940 under the direction of Edgar E. Augustine. From 1972 to 1973, Robert F. Lenhart, Vice President of the Committee for Economic Development, Washington, D.C., and George W. Baughman, Consulting Geologist, undertook a series of geologic investigations, including aerial photographs. These researchers were apparently not associated or supported by any academic institution. In 1974 Lenhart appealed to the University of Pennsylvania for support and further archaeological study. Although not properly historical archaeology, the project was referred to Jeffrey Kenyon. While Lenhart and Baughman continued their investigations, Kenyon undertook in 1975 a preliminary survey with recommendations for further work on the site. It appears that the University Museum had no further relationship with Fort Hill; it is unclear if any further work following Kenyon's recommendations was undertaken. Initial investigations by the University Museum predated the creation of MHRC, but later activities were considered part of the center's responsibility. The series (.2 linear feet) includes Correspondence and prior geologic and archaeological investigations of Lenhart and Baughman, Kenyon's 1976 report of his 1975 preliminary survey, as well as maps, sections, and photographs. Slides of the Fort Hill site taken during the 1975 survey are filed separately.

Yellow Springs

Yellow Springs is an historic village in Chester County, Pa. located between Phoenixville and Downingtown. During the 18th century the site became a health spa known for its mineral springs. During the American Revolution, General Washington established a military hospital in the village. After the war, Yellow Springs continued to function as a spa and resort, frequented my many well-known visitors. From 1868 to 1912 it was the site of the Chester Springs Soldiers' Orphans School, and from 1916 to 1950 the location of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Country School. From 1952 to 1974 it was also the headquarters of the film studio Good News Productions. When the village was threatened by commercial development, the Yellow Springs Association/Foundation (later Historic Yellow Springs, Inc.) was founded to preserve the site and develop it as an historic village. In 1973 the foundation commissioned the National Heritage Corporation to produce "An Adaptive Use Study for the Historic Buildings at Yellow Springs," and in 1974 contracted with Jeffrey Kenyon and the Museum Historic Research Center to conduct an "Archaeologic Feasibility and Basic Research Study" comprising mostly historical research and recommendations, including the production of basemaps, photography, structural evaluation, a magnetometric survey and soil analysis. During 1976 MHRC conducted preliminary archaeological investigations; a "Report on the Preliminary Archaeological Excavations …" was prepared in 1977 after the departure of Kenyon from the University Museum. With the dissolution of MHRC there was no further association with the museum. Historic Yellow Springs currently provides tours and events for the public, and is the home of Chester Springs Studio, offering classes and workshops in the visual arts. The series (.5 linear feet) includes correspondence, administrative and financial documents, excavation records, field notebooks, reports, drawings, sections, maps, photographs and slides. The slides are filed separately from this collection. A large portion of the series consists of historical research into property titles and deeds conducted by Historic Yellow Springs resident historian Carol S. Roark.

Stenton

Stenton was the country seat of James Logan (1674-1751) who served as William Penn's secretary, Mayor of Philadelphia, Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and acting governor of the Commonwealth during Penn's long absences. He became wealthy as a fur merchant, and is responsible for the infamous Walking Purchase of 1737; he was also a noted naturalist and bibliophile. He built Stenton as his country estate between 1723 and 1730. Upon his death, Stenton became the property of his son, William Logan (1717-1776), a successful merchant who continued to use the property as his summer residence. The estate then fell to his son Dr. George Logan (1753-1821), physician and United States Senator. The residence figured prominently in the Battle of Germantown (1777), and was the headquarters of both George Washington and British General William Howe. George Logan is responsible for the Stenton barn, built in 1787. The estate remained in the possession of the Logan family until 1910, when it became the property of the City of Philadelphia. The mansion and grounds have been maintained by the Colonial Dames of Pennsylvania since 1899, and is currently administered also by the Germantown Historic Society. The house and grounds at 4601 N. 18th Street (at Courtland) in Philadelphia, are maintained as an historic house museum.

Stenton has been the site of a series of archaeological investigations, starting in 1966 with a feasibility study by students of Temple University under the direction of John L. Cotter, followed by several studies undertaken by archaeologists Barbara Liggett, Betty Cousins, and Ivor Noel Hume. In 1974 the Society of Colonial Dames contracted with Jeffrey Kenyon and MHRC of the University of Pennsylvania Museum to survey and excavate the stone barn in view of a possible restoration. Kenyon, along with a team of student assistants, conducted excavations in 1975, determining the original layout and function of the barn's interior and outlying structures. In a further and essentially separate study, Kenyon along with Bruce Bevan of the University's Museum Applied Science Center for Archaeology conducted a survey using ground penetrating radar (electromagnetic subsurface profiling) in 1975 to determine the existence of architectural features beneath the soil. These surveys significantly proved the reliability of the` technology. Further artifact excavation was conducted following the surveys in selected areas (A & G) of the grounds. Additional archaeological investigations have been conducted at Stenton since the MHRC project.

The series (.7 linear feet) includes files related to the Stenton barn project (.5 linear feet) as well as the ground penetrating radar survey (.2 linear feet). The barn project includes correspondence, prior research, field logs and field notebooks, soil analysis, maps, sections, drawings, photographs, and the final report: "Stenton Barn Project – Archaeological Evaluation of Stenton Barn for Proposed Restoration" (1975), including original photographs and drawings. The radar survey includes administrative and background documents, maps, sections, graphs and notes, artifact catalogs, as well as several published reports. A collection of slides is filed separately from this collection.

Environmental impact and archaeological surveys

Between 1975 and 1977 MHRC was approached by governmental agencies in New Jersey and Pennsylvania to conduct archaeological surveys as required by environmental impact statements prior to construction or demolition of various sites. Of the nine projects, it appears that only one, the New Jersey Route 90 archaeological survey, ever proceeded beyond initial contact and planning. This project includes some property research and a "Preliminary Cultural Resource Review." The series and folder titles that follow should provide sufficient information to identify project and content.

Jacobsburg

Jacobsburg is an historical and industrial site about two miles northeast of Nazareth, in Northampton County, Pa. It was settled in 1743 by Swiss immigrant Jacob Hubler, who opened an inn there about 1785. The land was later acquired by William Henry II, who established a gun works in 1798, later a gristmill and sawmill. His sons built the Boulton Gun Works, named in honor of British industrialist Matthew Boulton. In 1972 the Jacobsburg Historical Society was formed to preserve and promote the site and its historic structures. The present site includes the Boulton Gun Works, Pennsylvania Longrifle Museum, and the Henry Homestead.

In 1976 the Jacobsburg Historical Society contracted with Jeffrey Kenyon and MHRC to survey the site and its records from prior archaeological research, evaluate its artifact collections, and make recommendations for future excavation and records maintenance. Excavations were conducted in 1976 resulting in significant artifact finds; an artifact analysis report followed. An historical survey was written in 1977 by Helen Schenck and Jacqueline Thibaut, after the departure of Kenyon from the University Museum. The series (.2 linear feet) consists of correspondence and administrative documents, Jacobsburg Historical Society publications, a brief field journal and artifact notes, and reports noted above.

Publication Information: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives,

Finding Aid Author:

Use Restrictions:

For additional Information, see:

Gorgas Mill Complex records Museum Institute for Conservation Archaeology records Education Department records (for Kenyon) John Cotter papers Valley Forge, Pa. Excavation records

Corporate Name(s)

• Historic Yellow Springs (Organization)
• Interagency Archaeological Services (National Park Service, U.S.)
• National Society of Colonial Dames of America. Pennsylvania

Geographic Name(s)

• Fort Hill (inhabited place)
• Stenton (Philadelphia, Pa.)
• Jacobsburg (Pa.)
• Franklin Square (Philadelphia, Pa.)
• Independence National Historical Park (Philadelphia, Pa.)
• Franklin Court (Philadelphia, Pa.)
• Great Egg Harbor Bay (N.J.)
• Chester Springs (Pa.)

Personal Name(s)

• Bevan, Bruce W.
• Kenyon, Jeffrey L.
• Schenck, Helen R.
• Lenhart, Robert F.
• Thibaut, Jacqueline

Subject(s)

• Environmental impact analysis
• Archaeology and history