Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum
Trails, exhibits, and field research reveal thousands of years of human life along Maryland’s Patuxent River shore.
Artwork inspired by Joyce J. Scott
Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum makes archaeology a landscape practice rather than a treasure hunt. People have lived along this Patuxent River shore for millennia, and the grounds, visitor center, and interpretive trails connect artifacts with changing environments and communities. The state’s archaeological conservation work gives the site an unusually direct link between field discovery and long-term care.
Begin at the visitor center when open, then take the accessible Layers of Time trail for a sense of the ground beneath the displays. Other paths vary in surface and slope. The grounds remain open more broadly than buildings, and the Maryland Archaeological Conservation Laboratory has separate access. Do not collect pottery, fossils, plants, or other objects; context left in the ground is evidence.
- River
- Patuxent
- Accessible route
- Layers of Time trail
- Entry
- Free
Quick guide
- Begin at the center
- Its shorter schedule shapes the museum portion of the visit.
- Leave finds in place
- Artifacts and fossils must not be collected.
Know before you go
- Read the land
- Notice where terrace, marsh, and river meet.
- Visit exhibits
- Connect objects to the communities that made and used them.
- Walk a trail
- Interpretation continues outside the building.
- Protect context
- A sherd in place says more than a souvenir out of context.
Good to know
The grounds, visitor center, house, and laboratory follow different schedules. Check the current building calendar if an indoor visit is essential.
Notice these
- Patuxent shoreline
- Archaeological interpretation
- Layers of Time trail