Tracie Mayfield
Research & Practice Areas
Colombia, Belize, Caribbean, Mesoamerica, Central America, and South America, anthropological archaeology, archaeologies of colonialism, heritage studies, community-led archaeology, zooarchaeology, ceramic analysis, ethnography, ethnohistory
Center, Institute & Lab Affiliations
- Heritage Education Network Belize, Consultant
- Institute for Field Research, Field School Director
- Old Providence and Santa Catalina Islands (Colombia) Archaeological Project (OPSCIAP), Principal Investigator
- Register of Professional Archaeologists, #4754
- San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye (Belize) Archaeological Project, Co-Director
- Southern California Mesoamerican Network Annual Conference, Board Member
- University of Southern California Archaeological Research Center, Faculty
Biography
Dr. Mayfield is an anthropological archaeologist, ethnohistorian, and teaching professor with research specializations in the archaeologies of colonialism, zooarchaeology, ceramics analysis, heritage studies, and community-led research. She is the Principal Investigator of the Old Providence and Santa Catalina Island (Colombia) Archaeological Project and Co-Director of the San Pedro, Ambergris Caye (Belize) Archaeological Project; both of which include experimental-education and directed-research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students.
Education
- Ph.D. Anthropology/Archaeology, University of Arizona, 2015
- M.A. Historical Archaeology, Illinois State University, 2009
- B.A. Anthropology, DePaul University, 2007
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Summary Statement of Research Interests
Dr. Mayfield’s current research centers on colonial-period, island and coastal settlements in the Western Caribbean from the Yucatán to South America, along the Miskito Coast. Her work seeks to better understand localized strategies for negotiating the intricate relationships between and among variable stakeholders embedded within the colonial-industrial complex, including European governments, military, & industrialists; Indigenous peoples; labor populations (pre- and post-emancipated peoples of African descent, tenant farmers, market & agricultural workers, and indentured servants); and loosely affiliated groups such as Maroons, pirates, buccaneers, and privateers. An important aspect of her community-based research aims to identify the effects of rapidly fluctuating military and administrative power structures on the movement and organization of materials, ideas, and built-environments during the colonial period and how diverse -yet connected- culture histories inform the structures of everyday life for the groups and individuals who currently inhabit these locations.
Research Keywords
Colombia, Belize, Caribbean, Mesoamerica, Central America, and South America, anthropological archaeology, archaeologies of colonialism, heritage studies, community-led archaeology, zooarchaeology, ceramic analysis, ethnography, ethnohistory
Detailed Statement of Research Interests
Dr. Mayfield’s current research centers on colonial-period, island and coastal settlements in the Western Caribbean from the Yucatán to South America, along the Miskito Coast. Her work seeks to better understand localized strategies for negotiating the intricate relationships between and among variable stakeholders embedded within the colonial-industrial complex, including European governments, military, & industrialists; Indigenous peoples; labor populations (pre- and post-emancipated peoples of African descent, tenant farmers, market & agricultural workers, and indentured servants); and loosely affiliated groups such as Maroons, pirates, buccaneers, and privateers. An important aspect of her community-based research aims to identify the effects of rapidly fluctuating military and administrative power structures on the movement and organization of materials, ideas, and built-environments during the colonial period and how diverse -yet connected- culture histories inform the structures of everyday life for the groups and individuals who currently inhabit these locations.