Colonial/Revolutionary/Early National America

Slaves dancing to a banjo

Early Americanists examine not only America but also the Atlantic world as a whole. Faculty members are particularly interested in race and identity, slavery, colonization, and revolution.

People

Michael A. Blaakman
Constitutional History
Cultural History
Economic History
Imperial History
Legal History
Native American
Political History
17th & 18th Centuries
19th Century
American West
North America
United States
Fara Dabhoiwala
Art History
British Studies
Colonialism & Postcolonialism
Constitutional History
Cultural History
Gender & Sexuality
Global
History & Public Policy
Intellectual History
Legal History
Political History
Public History
Social History
15th & 16th Centuries
17th & 18th Centuries
19th Century
20th Century
Elizabeth Ellis
Indigenous History
Native American
17th & 18th Centuries
American South
North America
Anne Pollard, 100 years old, portrait from 1721
Wendy Warren
Colonialism & Postcolonialism
Gender & Sexuality
Labor History
Microhistory
Slavery
Social History
Theory of History
17th & 18th Centuries
North America
United States
Sean Wilentz
Cultural History
Political History
Slavery
Social History
19th Century
20th Century
United States

Publications

American Contact: Objects of Intercultural Encounters and the Boundaries of Book History
American Contact: Objects of Intercultural Encounters and the Boundaries of Book History
Speculation Nation by Michael Blaakman
Speculation Nation: Land Mania in the Revolutionary American Republic
A New History of the American South
A New History of the American South
Book cover The Early Imperial Republic From the American Revolution to the U.S.–Mexican War
The Early Imperial Republic: From the American Revolution to the U.S.–Mexican War
Myth America by Kevin Kruse and Julian Zelizer
Myth America: Historians Take on the Biggest Legends and Lies About Our Past
The Great Power of Small Nations Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South by Elizabeth N. Ellis
The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South
Only the Clothes on Her Back: Clothing and the Hidden History of Power in the Nineteenth-Century US by Laura F Edwards
Only the Clothes on Her Back: Clothing and the Hidden History of Power in the Nineteenth-Century United States
As a City on a Hill: The Story of America's Most Famous Lay Sermon by Daniel T. Rodgers
As a City on a Hill: The Story of America's Most Famous Lay Sermon
New England Bound: Slavery and Colonization in Early America
New England Bound: Slavery and Colonization in Early America
Liberty, Equality, Power
Liberty, Equality, Power: A History of the American People, Volume I: To 1877
Sean Wilentz, The Rise of American Democracy
The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln
The Struggle for Equality: Abolitionists and the Negro in the Civil War and Reconstruction by James McPherson
The Struggle for Equality: Abolitionists and the Negro in the Civil War and Reconstruction

News

"Speculation Nation" Wins Cromwell Book Prize
Blaakman's "Speculation Nation" Nominated for the 2024 George Washington Prize
Elizabeth Ellis Wins SHEAR First Book Prize
Michael Blaakman and Marina Rustow Awarded Grants from Humanities Council
Elizabeth Ellis with her book The Great Power of Small Nations
Elizabeth Ellis Wins Two Book Prizes and One Honorable Mention
Laura F. Edwards with her book Only the Clothes on Her Back
"Only the Clothes on Her Back" Named to The National Book Review's 5 Hot Books List
Ekaterina Pravilova and Wendy Warren
Pravilova and Warren Awarded NEH Grants to Support Advanced Research in the Humanities
Elise Mitchell
Elise Mitchell Joins Department of History as Presidential Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Keely Smith
Keely Smith Named a 2021-2022 David Center for the American Revolution Short-Term Resident Research Fellow
The World That Fear Made Slave Revolts and Conspiracy Scares in Early America by Jason T. Sharples University of Penn Press
New Book by Jason T. Sharples *10
African American
John Murrin; Photo by Amy Baxter-Bellamy
John Murrin, Emeritus Professor of History, Passes Away
Dickinson Hall
Wendy Warren Named Frederick Burkhardt Fellow
Colonial & Imperial Workshop
Colonialism and Imperialism Workshop
Colonial Americas Workshop
Colonial Americas Workshop
Rhae Lynn Barnes (Credit: Rhae Lynn Barnes), Michael Blaakman (Credit: David C. Williard), Iryna Vushko (Credit: Iryna Vushko)
Faculty Appointments: Rhae Lynn Barnes, Michael Blaakman, Iryna Vushko
'New England Bound': Warren Explores Colonialism and Slavery
Slavery

Events

Colonial and Revolutionary Americas Workshop (CRAW)
African Americans and Gradual Abolition Regimes in the U.S. South: A Digital History
Feb 12, 2025, 12:00 pm
Colonial and Revolutionary Americas Workshop (CRAW)
American Kings, American Colonies: Indigenous Sovereigns and the Planting of English Empire
Mar 20, 2025, 4:30 pm
Colonial and Revolutionary Americas Workshop (CRAW)
Convict Servitude, Slavery, and Humanitarian Discourse in the British Atlantic World
Apr 2, 2025, 4:30 pm