News Archive

Professor Matt Andrews Featured in Daily Tar Heel Article

Professor Matt Andrews’ course, HIST 585: Race, Basketball, and the American Dream, has been praised in a new article in the Daily Tar Heel. You can read the full article about the course, its impact, and the importance of its … Read more

Dr. Eren Tasar offers new online course – “Crossroads of Civilization”

UNC History Professor Eren Tasar is offering a new online course through thegreatcourses.com. Crossroads of Civilization: A History of Central Asia explores the rich and complex history of Central Asia, a land shaped by empires, trade, and cultural exchange. From … Read more

UNC History PhD Craig Gill Publishes “Caddying on the Color Line”

Our very own History PhD alumni, Craig Gill has published a new book – Caddying on the Color Line. This insightful study explores how Southern Black caddies transformed what was once perceived as an unskilled job into a profession, honed … Read more

Wayne Lee Wins Prestigious Military History Award for Groundbreaking Book on Indigenous Warfare

Wayne Lee has been honored by the Society for Military History with the Outstanding Book Award for his latest work, The Cutting-Off Way: Indigenous Warfare in Eastern North America, 1500-1800. Published by UNC Press, the book offers a meticulously researched … Read more

Kathleen DuVal tackles history for a broad audience

Dr. Kathleen DuVal spent nine years working on her award-winning book “Native Nations: A Millennium in North America.” Now, she’s translating that research for a wider audience.    “I’ve moved over time to wanting my books to be able to … Read more

In Memory of James G. Ferguson Jr.

Jim Ferguson passed away on January 27, 2025. He was a Tar Heel through and through, having earned both his bachelor’s and doctoral degrees in psychology from UNC during the 1960s. Jim also had a long association with Honors Carolina. … Read more

Professor Emeritus William Leuchtenburg dies at 102

William Leuchtenburg, a leading historian of modern American politics, passed away on Jan. 28 at age 102. A professor emeritus at UNC-Chapel Hill, he was best known for Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal, which won the Bancroft Prize. … Read more

Jennifer Boittin Wins 2022-2023 Wylie Prize for “Undesirable”

Jennifer Boittin, Frank Porter Graham Distinguished Professor of Global History at UNC Chapel Hill, has won the 2022-2023 Wylie Prize in French Studies for her book Undesirable: Passionate Mobility and Women’s Defiance of French Colonial Policing 1919-1952. Drawing from Cambodian, … Read more

Marcus Bull Publishes New Book – The Great Siege of Malta

Marcus Bull’s upcoming book, The Siege of Malta, offers a fresh perspective on the 1565 Ottoman siege that shaped Mediterranean power dynamics. While historians view Lepanto (1571) as a stalemate, Bull highlights Malta’s greater strategic stakes—its loss could have exposed … Read more

KRASNO Event Series

The Krasno Events Series at UNC-Chapel Hill hosts regular lectures, talks, and discussions to deepen understanding of global affairs, both past and present. It is part of the Krasno Global Affairs & Business Council, led by Prof. Klaus Larres. These … Read more

UNC History Alum Shannon Eaves Wins Prestigious Fellowship

Shannon Eaves, an assistant professor at the College of Charleston, has received a prestigious AAUW fellowship to research and write her book, Illicit Intercourse: How the Sexual Exploitation of Enslaved Women Shaped the Antebellum South. The book examines the systemic … Read more

Kathleen DuVal and Benjamin Waterhouse on Notary Public Radio Podcast

Check out our newest episodes of our podcast Notary Public Radio! Hear an exclusive interview between Michael and Miguel, and special guest, Dr. Kathleen DuVal, where she answers questions about her newest book, Native Nations: A Millennium in North America. … Read more

Kathleen DuVal wins 2024 Cundill History Prize for Native Nations

Kathleen DuVal has been announced as the 2024 winner of the US$75,000 Cundill History Prize for Native Nations: A Millennium In North America (Random House). The 2024 jurors awarded DuVal, a professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel … Read more

Kleio Award Lecture: Friday October 25

History Department Announces Dr. Gene A. Riddle Fund

The History Department is pleased to announce the establishment of the Dr. Gene A. Riddle Fund for the History Department in the College of Arts & Sciences. This generous $50,000 endowment, gifted by Dr. Riddle’s son, Gene Riddle, will allow the … Read more

Dr. Genna Rae McNeil in The Road to Brown

At the Passmore Center, members of the Hillsborough community gathered to view the 1990 documentary titled The Road to Brown. The documentary discussed the landmark Civil Rights case Brown v. Board of Education, but focused specifically on Charles Hamilton Houston, … Read more

DuVal in Time Magazine

Our very own Dr. Kathleen DuVal wrote a compelling piece in Time Magazine discussing ongoing efforts by indigenous groups in the United States to reclaim artifacts currently held in museums across the country – as an increasing number of institutions have taken … Read more

UNC PhD Eaves Earns Tenure, Publishes Book

We want to extend our warmest congratulations to Dr. Shannon Eaves, who graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill with her PhD in History in 2015, for earning tenure and promotion to the position of Associate Professor at the College of Charleston! Eaves … Read more

Dr. Kathleen DuVal in The Atlantic

An excerpt of Dr. Kathleen DuVal’s recently published book, Native Nations (2024), was published in The Atlantic. Here, please read Dr. DuVal’s article on Native North Americans’ economic, political, and social innovations during the Little Ice Age. Later this month, … Read more

Summer 2024 Registration is now open!

Undergraduate students can now register for courses for Summer 2024! The UNC History Department is offering remote and in-person options for both summer sessions on courses covering everything from modern Europe to the Russian Revolution, from Native North America to … Read more

UNC PhD Honored with Top Teaching Award

Dr. Anna Krome-Lukens, an alumna of the UNC History Department’s PhD Program who has returned to the campus to teach in the Department of Public Policy, was recently awarded the 2024 Chapman Family Teaching Award. Selected as one of 25 … Read more

Dr. Morgan Pitelka’s Newest Book Receives Honors

Congratulations to Dr. Morgan Pitelka, whose 2022 book, Reading Medieval Ruins: Urban Life and Destruction in Sixteenth-Century Japan (Cambridge University Press), was recently honored by the International Convention of Asia Scholars as one of the ten best Asian studies books … Read more

Congratulations to Sarah Miles on Dean’s Distinguished Dissertation Award!

Congratulations to graduate student Sarah K. Miles, who received the 2024 Dean’s Distinguished Dissertation Award in the area of the Humanities and Fine Arts for her dissertation entitled “One and the Same Struggle: Francophone Intellectuals, Global Solidarity, and Third Worldist … Read more

Starred Review of DuVal’s Upcoming Book in Publishers’ Weekly

Dr. Kathleen DuVal’s latest book, Native Nations: A Millenium in North America, set for release in April 2024, received a starred review in Publishers’ Weekly. Beginning with the millenium-long histories of sixteenth-century Native American societies, DuVal contextualizes early encounters between … Read more

Larres Analyzes 2023 EU-China Summit

Richard M. Krasno Distinguished Professor in History Klaus Larres, a noted expert in international affairs and global diplomacy, has just published a short article on the 2023 EU-China Summit. The Summit was just held in Beijing and was the first … Read more

UNC Faculty, Post-Docs on Native American History & Thanksgiving

As folks at UNC head home or meet with loved ones for this week of Thanksgiving, they may hear the story of the “First Thanksgiving” in children’s books or on television. In a recent article for Time Magazine, several members … Read more

UNC Endeavors features Sweet

Dr. John Wood Sweet, author of the award-winning book, The Sewing Girl’s Tale, was featured in a piece by Alyssa LaFaro in UNC’s “Endeavors” series! Endeavors highlights the people and personal stories behind important and groundbreaking research being done at … Read more

Thomas-Patterson’s Summer Research leads to new conclusions

MA Candidate Mark Thomas-Patterson was the recipient of the Rose Library Short-Term Award Fellowship from the Rose Library at Emory University to conduct research over the course of summer 2023. With the support of this grant, Thomas-Patterson was able to … Read more

Undergraduate Henderson featured in Smithsonian Voices

Over the past summer, UNC undergraduate student and History and Business Administration double major Maddie Henderson (Ojibwe/Chippewa) completed an internship with the Smithsonian. As part of that work, she learned about “the Indian boarding school era and how forced assimilation … Read more

Turk in The Atlantic

Using research from her new book, The Women of NOW, Dr. Katie Turk has recently published an engaging article in The Atlantic about the benefits and drawbacks of donation-driven fundraising. This is a fascinating article and a great example of how our … Read more

Piskačová wins Jung Paper Prize

UNC PhD student Zora Piskačová has been awarded the prestigious Anthony Jung Award for Best Graduate Student Paper at the 48th Annual European Studies Conference, sponsored by the Unviersity of Nebraska at Omaha. Piskačová, who studies modern East Central Europe … Read more

UNC PhDs Offer Support for Rob Waters’ Groundbreaking Book

Dr. Rob Waters, a historian of Modern Britain at Queen Mary’s University in London, has just published his second monograph with Oxford University Press: Colonized by Humanity: Caribbean London and the Politics of Integration at the End of Empire. In 2021, … Read more

3 UNC PhDs win Michie Award

This year, three UNC History graduate students have been selected to receive the Sally Markham Michie Award from the Orange County chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Cristian Walk, Nick Sifford, and Skye Brenner will be honored at … Read more

13th Annual UNC-KCL Graduate Student Workshop on Transatlantic Approaches (September 11-12)

Update Thanks to everyone who joined for the 2023 UNC-KCL Graduate Student Workshop! Our panelists learned so much from their peers and faculty participants and we were thrilled to host our friends from King’s College London here in Chapel Hill! … Read more

PhD Candidate Sarah Miles Interviews UNC Alumn Nicole Bauer

Sarah K. Miles, currently in her last year as a PhD student at UNC, is a host for the New Books Network channel in French Studies. Her most recent episode is an interview with Nicole Bauer, who graduated with her … Read more

PhD Candidate Mira Markham Awarded Konrad H. Jarausch Essay Prize

Congratulations to Mira Markham, 2023 recipient of the Konrad H. Jarausch Essay Prize for Advanced Graduate Students in modern Central European history, awarded by the North Carolina German Studies Seminar and Workshop Series (NCGS). With her submission entitled “Operation Velehrad, … Read more

PhD Candidate Alison Curry featured on R.UNC

Alison Curry, currently an ABD student in the History Department, was recently featured in a Research UNCovered post for the fascinating work she’s doing on Jewish cemetaries in Poland in the interwar period and during World War II. Her work … Read more

UNC PhD Nurlan Kabdylkhak Awarded Newcombe Fellowship

We are so incredibly proud of Nurlan Kabdylkhak, UNC History PhD Candidate in late imperial Russian and Central Asian History, who has been awarded a Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship for 2023. Nurlan’s dissertation is entitled “Muslim Institutions and … Read more

UNC PhD Jefferson Cowie wins 2023 Pulitzer Prize

Jefferson Cowie, James G. Stahlman Professor of American History at Vanderbilt University, won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for history for his book Freedom’s Dominion: A Saga of White Resistance to Federal Power (Basic Books). The book provides a powerful account of … Read more

Bryant on Playgrounds in Prague

Have you ever thought about the history encapsulated by a set of swings? How about the way that parks might be shaped by popular memory? Inspired in part by his recent book, Prague: Belonging and the Modern City, and in … Read more

Jarausch Publishes Memoir

Congratulations to long-time member of the History Department and prolific scholar of German History, Dr. Konrad Jarausch for the publication of his new book! Dr. Jarausch’s memoir, The Burden of German Hisory: A Transatlantic Life (Berghahn, 2023) “presents a sustained academic reflection … Read more

Graduate Student Hooper Schultz Featured in Carolina Graduate School Magazine

PhD Candidate and UNC ’14 alum Hooper Schultz is featured in the April edition of Carolina Graduate School Magazine. Read about his journey to graduate school, his research through the Southern Oral History Program, and his important work on gay … Read more

Andrews at the BOT

Despite UNC missing this year’s March Madness bracket, much-lauded History Professor Matt Andrews brought basketball to the March 23 Board of Trustees meeting. Andrews gave a brief presentation on five lesser-known basketball teams in North Carolina, highlighting how the history … Read more

The Sewing Girl’s Tale wins New York City Book Award

It’s a big week for Dr. John Wood Sweet! In addition to winning the prestigious Bancroft Prize for American history, Dr. Sweet’s book, The Sewing Girl’s Tale, has won the New York City Book Award. The NYCBA, established in 1996, … Read more

Congratulations to Dr. John Sweet on 2023 Bancroft Prize!

Join us in congratulating Dr. John Wood Sweet, whose most recent book, The Sewing Girl’s Tale, won the 2023 Bancroft Prize. According to the New York Times, this prize is “one of the most prestigious honors in the field of American history.” … Read more

Çaşkurlu & Turkish Student Association Fundraise for Earthquake Relief

A UNC History PhD student was featured in today’s issue of The Well for the incredible work he has done fundraising for those effected by the recent earthquakes in Turkey. Ahmet Tarık Çaşkurlu, himself a survivor of the devastating 1999 … Read more

Talbert publishes World and Hour in Roman Minds

Congratulations to Richard Talbert on the publication of World and Hour in Roman Minds: Exploratory Essays (Oxford University Press, 2023). “World and Hour in Roman Minds: Exploratory Essays seeks to penetrate Romans’ consciousness of space and time, aspects of antiquity currently attracting … Read more

UNC History Members participate in upcoming USS Conference

From March 15-18, UNC will host a conference with the “Universities Studying Slavery”, a group of more than 100 institutions committed to critical reexaminations of their own past with regards to enslavement in the United States. The conference, organized by … Read more

Alumni Marko Dumančić wins Best Book in Cultural Studies Award (AATSEEEL)

Please join us in a standing ovation for UNC PhD alumni, Dr. Marko Dumančić! Dr. Dumančić’s book, Men out of Focus, won the 2022 Svetlana Boym Best Book in Cultural Studies Award presented by AATSEEEL! You can buy his book through … Read more

Digital History Lab Podcast: The Past Presented

UNC History Department’s Digital History Lab is very excited to announce the first episode in their new podcast, “The Past Presented.” The podcast aims to examine the tools, techniques, and technologies that historians use to study the past through interviews … Read more

Sweet & Lindsay win Book and Article Prizes

Congratulations to John Sweet, whose book, The Sewing Girl’s Tale, has been selected as the Journal of the American Revolution’s 2022 Book-of-the-Year. You can find out more about Dr. Sweet’s book at his website or purchase it here. Building on this success, … Read more

Congratulations to John Sweet on the Journal of the American Revolution’s 2022 Book of the Year Award

Dr. John Sweet’s latest book, The Sewing Girl’s Tale, has been selected as the Journal of the American Revolution’s 2022 Book-of-the-Year. Congratulations!

Dr. Klaus Larres featured in The Well

Read Dr. Larres’ analysis of Ukraine and Russia’s unwillingness to negotiate peace here.

Turk wins Tanner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching

We’re very excited to be able to announce that Professor Katherine Turk has just been announced as one of the recipients of UNC’s prestigious Tanner Awards for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. Dr. Turk specializes in the histories of women, gender … Read more

Watch Professor William E. Leuchtenburg’s 100th birthday video tribute

On October 9, 2022, the UNC History Department celebrated the 100th birthday of Professor Emeritus William Leuchtenburg at the historic Horace Williams House in Chapel Hill. Watch the event’s tribute video, created by Gregory Georges, here. Born on September 28, … Read more

Tsin named Distinguished Term Professor

At the November 2022 UNC Board of Trustees meeting, seven faculty members were appointed to distinguished professorships. We’re very honored to have one of these appointees, Michael Tsin, in the History Department! Dr. Tsin was named Earl N. Philips Jr. … Read more

Chad Bryant wins Radomír Luža Prize

Chad Bryant was a co-winner of the Radomír Luža Prize for his book, Prague: Belonging and the Modern City (Harvard University Press, 2021). This biennial prize is awarded by American Friends of the Documentation Center of Austrian Resistance and Center … Read more

Prof. Emerita Hall Honored by NC Literary & Historical Association

Please join our department in congratulating Prof. Emerita Jacquelyn Hall! Dr. Hall is being honored by the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association as winner of the 2022 NCLHA’s Christopher Crittenden Award for Significant Contributions to History in North Carolina.   The … Read more

Professor Emeritus Ferris wins MCJ Pathfinder Award

On October 25, 2022, the Mississippi Center for Justice hosted their annual Champions of Justice event – a fundraising event that helps to sustain their efforts to “dismantle Mississippi’s culture of injustice.” Among those honored at the event was Dr. … Read more

Professor Kramer discusses “civic health” in The Well

In the most recent issue of The Well, Dr. Lloyd Kramer – History Professor and Director of Carolina Public Humanities – suggests that a thriving public life is as important for communities as physical health. Interviewed by Scott Jared, Dr. … Read more

Kathleen DuVal co-authors new U.S. History Textbook

We’re delighted to share the news that the new edition of the Norton U.S. history textbook Give Me Liberty! just was published, co-authored by UNC History Professor Kathleen DuVal, along with Eric Foner and Lisa McGirr. You can listen to Drs. DuVal, Foner, … Read more

Graduate Alumnus Bret Devereaux featured in Endeavors

Dr. Bret Devereaux, who graduated with his PhD in Ancient History from UNC-CH in 2018, was featured in a recent edition of the UNC research publication Endeavors. The article brings together Devereaux’s teaching and research on the social and material costs … Read more

Read about UNC-Chapel Hill and King’s College London’s longstanding partnership

A recent UNC Global article celebrated UNC-Chapel Hill and King’s College London’s academic exchanges. Read about the programs’ partnership and Dr. Chad Bryant’s involvement here.

Professor Emeritus William Leuchtenburg celebrates 100th Birthday!

The UNC History Department proudly celebrates the 100th birthday of Professor Emeritus William Leuchtenburg. Born on September 28, 1922, in New York City, he earned his BA in 1943 from Cornell and his PhD in History in 1951 from Columbia … Read more

New Book by Dr. Cynthia Radding

Please join us in congratulating Cynthia Radding on the publication of her impressive new book, Bountiful Deserts: Sustaining Indigenous Worlds in Northern New Spain (University of Arizona Press). You can read more about the book below or order it from the … Read more

Dr. Kathleen Duval Featured on Book Breaks

Kathleen Duval, the Bowman and Gordon Gray Professor of History, will be featured this coming Sunday, September 18th at 2 p.m. on “Book Breaks”! Book Breaks is an educational series aimed at K-12 and college students and educators managed by … Read more

Dr. Erik Gellman & UNC host 10th Southern Labor Studies Association

The 10th annual Southern Labor Studies Association (SLSA) will be hosted at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill this weekend! Dr. Erik Gellman of the History Department is hosting the conference and more than 150 people are registered … Read more

Dr. Antwain Hunter featured in The Well

Our newest faculty member, Dr. Antwain K. Hunter, was featured in the August 17th edition of The Well! Dr. Hunter was featured as one of five new professors joining the College of Arts and Sciences. You can read the story, … Read more

Undergraduate History Major Emily Orland Publishes with The Fire

Undergraduate history and journalism major Emily Orland has published a new piece with The Fire that reflects on her experience as a student-journalist at UNC. Orland uses her training in both history and journalism to comment on the complexity of … Read more

Professor Matt Andrews featured in The Well

The July 28th edition of UNC’s The Well features an interview with history Professor Matt Andrews about the restoration of Jim Thorpe’s Olympic wins. In the article, written by Emily Padula, Professor Andrews argues that “the Native American athlete’s story…reminds … Read more

Congratulations to Dr. Klaus Larres for publishing two new books

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Klaus Larres for the publication of TWO new books: Most recent is the massive Oxford Handbook of German Politics, edited by Klaus Larres, Holger Moroff of the UNC Political Science Department, and the late Ruth … Read more

Congratulations to Professors Don Reid, Miguel La Serna, and Morgan Pitelka

Please join us in congratulating Don Reid, Miguel La Serna, and Morgan Pitelka, whose recent accomplishments and recognition have just been approved by the Board of Trustees: Dr. Reid has been appointed the John Wesley and Anna Hodgin Hanes Distinguished … Read more

Congratulations to Dr. John Sweet on his NYT Review

Dr. Sweet’s latest book, The Sewing Girl’s Tale: A Story of Crime and Consequences in Revolutionary America (2022), was reviewed by The New York Times this past week. Read the article here. You can also find a short excerpt on Lit … Read more

Congratulations to Lindsay Ayling, Frederick Cochran, and Marlon Londoño, 2021 Teaching Assistant Award Recipients

On April 14, the Committee on Teaching honored graduate students Lindsay Ayling, Frederick Cochran, and Marlon Londoño with the 2021 teaching assistant awards. Read about their respective awards below:   UNC History Department Peter Filene Award for Creative Teaching: Lindsay … Read more

Dr. William Sturkey Receives Robert E. Bryan Award for Public Service

Congratulations to Dr. William Sturkey for receiving the Carolina Center for Public Service’s Robert E. Bryan Award for Public Service on April 12, 2022. Dr. Sturkey is recognized for his scholarship on race and the U.S. South, as well as … Read more

Professor Fitz Brundage’s Digital Project Spotlighted by College

The college of arts and sciences website recently featured a spotlight on Fitz Brundage’s long-term project to produce a digital collection of North Carolina’s monuments, shrines and commemorative public art. Commemorative Landscape, an interdisciplinary collaboration, “contains information on roughly 1000 historical … Read more

Congratulations to Dr. Genna Rae McNeil, recipient of Charles Hamilton Houston Medallion of Merit

Emerita Professor Genna Rae McNeil is co-winner of this year’s Charles Hamilton Houston Medallion of Merit, conferred by the Washington DC Bar Association. In 1925, the Association was co-founded by Charles Hamilton Houston, whose prize-winning biography, Groundwork, was written by … Read more

Dr. Katherine Turk’s Walking Tour Featured for Women’s History Month

Read about Dr. Turk’s spring 2020 HIST 179H, and their virtual walking tour exploring women’s history on UNC’s campus, in The Well.

Graduate Student Cristian Walk Receives Tanner Award

Congratulations to department graduate student Cristian Walk on receiving a Tanner Award for Graduate Teaching Assistants. Read more about Cristian and his philosophy on teaching here.

Congratulations to Dr. William Sturkey, 2022 Tanner Award Recipient!

Earlier this year, Dr. William Sturkey earned a 2022 Tanner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. Created in 1952, the Tanner Award celebrates inspirational teaching of undergraduates, especially first- and second-year students. Read about Dr. Sturkey’s accomplishment and reflections on … Read more

Undergraduate Bradley Sadowsky ’24 Wins Best Paper in Southeast Conference of the Association for Asian Studies

Earlier this year, Bradley Sadowsky ’24, a math and comparative literature major, won a SEC-AAS award for their paper “Post-War Japanese Society and Mishima Yukio’s The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea.” Sadowsky originally wrote the paper through … Read more

Congratulations to Dr. Don Raleigh!

On February 25 in Richmond, Virginia, the Southern Conference on Slavic Studies recognized Professor Emeritus Donald J. Raleigh with its Lifetime Achievement Award. Join us in congratulating Dr. Raleigh!

William Sturkey Featured in the Daily Tar Heel

Last week, the Daily Tar Heel featured an article about the History department’s William Sturkey. The article, entitled “UNC history professor William Sturkey aims to empower students to talk about race,” discusses Dr. Sturkey’s teaching and his public facing work … Read more

Karen Hagemann wins Society for Military History’s Distinguished Book Award for Reference Work

The Society for Military History’s Distinguished Book Awards Committee selected  The Oxford Handbook of Gender, War, and the Western World since 1600  (Oxford University Press, 2020), edited by Karen Hagemann, Stefan Dudink and Sonya Rose, as the winner of the … Read more

New Digital History Lab Podcast Episode with Professor Bryant

In the latest episode of The Cutting Room Floor, Chad Bryant, Associate Professor of History at UNC – Chapel Hill, tells the story of Jiři Smichovský. Smichovský was an interwar Czechoslovak occultist turned Nazi informant. And then Communist informant. Oh, … Read more

Professor Shields Awarded Middle East Studies Association Undergraduate Education Award

Professor Sarah Shields has been awarded this year’s Middle East Studies Association Undergraduate Education Award. Professor Shield’s teaching about Middle East history has been creative, innovative, student-centered, and diverse. She also has shared both her historical expertise and pedagogical strategies … Read more

Dr. William Ferris to Receive Cora Norman Award from the Mississippi Humanities Council

Congratulations to Professor William Ferris on being honored with the Cora Norman Award from the Mississippi Humanities Council. The award recognizes Ferris’ “distinguished career as a scholar and national leader in the humanities.” Read more about the award on the … Read more

UNC to Honor Henry Owl, First American Indian Student at Carolina and Former History Graduate Student

The Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Naming University Facilities and Units has decided to rename the Student Affairs building on campus in honor of Henry Owl. Owl was a Cherokee historian and the first American Indian student to enroll at the … Read more

Kimathi Muiruri ’21 named Rhodes Scholar

Kimathi Muiruri ’21, who majored in history and environmental studies, was a Morehead-Cain Scholar, a member of Phi Beta Kappa and is an Honors Carolina laureate. He is the third Tar Heel to be named a Rhodes Scholar this fall. … Read more

Prof. Emerita McNeil Speaker at Stone Memorial Lecture

On November 9th, Professor Emerita Genna Rae McNeil will be the featured speaker at the 29th Annual Sonja Hayne Stone Memorial Lecture. The lecture will be delivered via Zoom. For more information and to register, please go to the Stone … Read more

Graduate Student Alexandra Odom In Carolina Arts & Sciences Magazine

Alexandra Odom won a Graduate School Impact award for her role in a documentary film focusing on the achievement gap between white and Black students in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. The Carolina Arts & Sciences Magazine wrote about Odom … Read more

Professor Jay Smith Awarded the Education Law Association’s Steinhilber Award

Professor Jay Smith is one of six historians honored with the Education Law Association’s Steinhilber Award for the best legal brief of the year.  Dr. Smith, along with UNC alum Taylor Branch and others, collaborated in writing a Supreme Court amicus … Read more

Five Graduate Students Awarded Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships

Congratulations to five history graduate students on being awarded the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship. Laura Cox, Arianne Ekinci, Cody Love, Emily Taylor, and Abigail Warchol will use their fellowships to travel to the areas they study and conduct research. You … Read more

Charles Sellers (PhD, 1950) Remembered in New York Times

Charles Sellers, UNC PhD (1950), passed away last week, aged 98. Sellers was the author of The Market Revolution. The New York Times published an obituary of Sellers over the weekend which celebrated him as “a historian whose work on early-19th-century … Read more

Prof. Worthen Writes about Tenure

Professor Molly Worthen recently published a Opinion Guest Essay in the New York Times about the fight over the tenure system, its history, and how it could change. Read her piece, “The Fight Over Tenure is Not Really About Tenure” … Read more

Professor Lloyd Kramer Receives UNC Jefferson Award and Comments on Award’s Meaning and Future

Professor Lloyd Kramer recently received the University’s Thomas Jefferson Award. The award, according to the faculty governance website, “is presented annually to ‘that member of the academic community who through personal influence and performance of duty in teaching, writing, and … Read more

Prof. Emeritus Don Raleigh Wins Awards

Professor Emeritus Don Raleigh received the 2021 recipient of the award for Distinguished Contributions to Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies from the Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies. The citation makes clear his impressive achievements. You can … Read more

William R. Ferris Interviewed in Washington Independent Review of Books

In a recent interview with the Washington Independent Review of Books, Joel R. Williamson Eminent Professor of History William R. Ferris talks civil rights, Black Lives Matter, and finding a one-of-a-kind photo for his new book. You can read the … Read more

New Podcast from Matt Andrews

Matt Andrews has recently launched his new podcast, “American Sport with Matt Andrews.” Each episode explores the sporting events that have defined our culture and changed the course of American history. It will go beyond the sports page telling of … Read more

Letter from the History Department on Hannah-Jones Tenure Case

On behalf of the History Department, Chair of the Department Professor Lisa Lindsay sent the following letter to the UNC Board of Trustees regarding the tenure case of Nikole Hannah-Jones. To read the letter in full, please click here.

Prof. King’s Book Wins Award

Professor Michelle King’s Culinary Nationalism in Asia (Bloomsbury Academic, 2019), which she edited and contributed a chapter to (“A Cookbook in Search of a Country: Fu Pei-mei and the Conundrum of Chinese Culinary Nationalism”), just won the Association for the … Read more

Prof. Lloyd Kramer’s Reflections For 2021 Graduates

During the History Department’s Zoom Recognition Ceremony for Graduating Seniors on May 16, 2021, Professor Lloyd Kramer delivered remarks on behalf of the faculty. His remarks, “The Enduring Value of Historical Education,” affirmed the importance of a historical education and … Read more

DHL Premiers New Podcast: The Cutting Room Floor

The Digital History Lab at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill presents The Cutting Room Floor – incredibly true stories from the past unearthed by historians, told by historians. Each episode features a guest historian who tells a fascinating … Read more

Professor Sturkey’s Article in The Atlantic Focuses on the Future of Researching Black History

Dr. William Sturkey has penned an insightful article, published in The Atlantic, in which he details the methods he used to unearth the Black history of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, for his book Hattiesburg: An American City in Black and White. Sturkey writes that … Read more

Department Alumnus, Judge Algenon Marbley, featured in New York Times for ruling on policing and tear gas in Ohio

Chief Judge Algenon Marbley, of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, this week ordered police in Columbus Ohio to cease their use of tear gas, pepper spray, batons and rubber bullets against nonviolent protesters. Read … Read more

Prof. Jim Leloudis Testifies in NC Voter ID Case

Professor Jim Leloudis recently testified in a court case challenging North Carolina’s 2018 Voter I.D. Law. The lawsuit, filed by the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, argues the law suppresses Black voters in the state. Professor Leloudis’s testimony was based … Read more

Prof. Sweet Profiled in Carolina Arts & Sciences Magazine

Professor John Sweet was profiled in the most recent Carolina Arts & Sciences Magazine. As an IAH Fellow, Professor Sweet spoke about his First Year Seminar course, “Seeing History in Everyday Places,” and the GIS project they completed. Read the … Read more

History Major Samuel Zahn named a 2021 Truman Scholar

Congratulations to Sam Zahn for being named a 2021 Truman Scholar. Sam is a major in History and Political Science, a Robertson Scholar, and current student member of the Undergraduate Studies Committee in History. He has dedicated his time on campus … Read more

Feature in the Daily Tar Heel details the Career of Professor Genna Rae McNeil

Professor Genna Rae McNeil will retire from the department this semester. You can read about Dr. McNeil’s remarkable career in the Daily Tar Heel.

Prof. Emeritus Bill Ferris Remembers Roger Mudd, UNC MA 1953 and National Journalist

Professor Emeritus Bill Ferris Remembers Roger Mudd, UNC MA 1953 and National Journalist. The full obituary is below: Roger Mudd (1928-2021) Roger Mudd earned his MA in History at the University of North Carolina in 1953.  Carlyle Sitterson was the … Read more

WGEI Statement Concerning the 2020 Murder of Mr. George Floyd and the 2021 Trial of His Killer

The-UNC-Chapel Hill History Department Working Group on Equity and Inclusion has written the following Statement Concerning the 2020 Murder of Mr. George Floyd and the 2021 Trial of His Killer. If you would like to sign the statement, please follow … Read more

UNC History Ranks #11 in Best Graduate Programs

U.S. News and World Report ranked UNC’s History Department as the #11 “Best History Program” in the country! Full list here.

Statement in Solidarity with Carolina’s Asian and Asian American Communities

The Department of History strongly condemns racist violence, intimidation, and discrimination in all forms, including those against Asians and Americans of Asian descent, with whom we stand in solidarity. On March 16, 2021, a white gunman killed eight people—six of … Read more

Dr. William Sturkey’s work with UNC Library’s “On the Books” project reveals the extent of North Carolina’s Jim Crow laws

Read about the inner workings of UNC Library’s “On the Books: Jim Crow and Algorithms of Resistance” – a project that uses text mining and machine learning to identify racist language in legal documents. The History Department’s Dr. William Sturkey … Read more

Dr. William Sturkey Featured in WUNC’s “Tested”

Associate Professor William Sturkey was featured in WUNC’s most recent episode of “Tested,” detailing faculty efforts to change the name of what we currently know as Hamilton Hall. Description of the episode below: J.G. de Roulhac Hamilton’s name has marked … Read more

Nominate Your TA for Outstanding Teaching Award!

Every year, the History Department gives awards to outstanding teaching assistants. Undergraduate nominations are crucial in choosing the recipients. Please tell us why you think your TA deserves a teaching award. The more detail and examples you can provide, the … Read more

2020 Statement on White House Memo Barring Federal Agencies from Race-Related Trainings

Statement on White House Memo Barring Federal Agencies from Race-Related Trainings READ: White House memo barring federal agencies from race-related training sessions “The President, and his Administration, are fully committed to the fair and equal treatment of all individuals within … Read more

Jennifer Parker Wins Manager of the Year

Congratulations to Jennifer Parker on her award for Manager of the Year in the College of Arts & Sciences for outstanding accomplishments in leadership and management!   For the full announcement, go here.

Prof. La Serna Writes Piece for Washington Post

Miguel La Serna recently co-authored a “Perspective” piece for the Washington Post with Kia Caldwell, professor of African, African American and Diaspora Studies, about the lack of diverse leadership at UNC and its role in exacerbating the COVID-19 pandemic. They argue … Read more

Bret Devereaux (PhD ’18) Writes Essay Featured in The Atlantic

Bret Devereaux, PhD ’18 and research affiliate, writes on the challenges facing public higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic. He writes “Calling a halt to on-campus operations and going totally online, thereby waiving on-campus fees, was the right, moral choice. … Read more

Prof. Barney on Learning from Lincoln in Crisis

William Barney writes on the History News Network about how we can learn from President Lincoln in this historical moment. He writes “the United States is at a crossroads” and “the path chosen will determine whether contemporary America resumes its … Read more

Prof. Lowery writes piece for Washington Post

Malinda Maynor Lowery recently wrote a “Perspective” piece for the Washington Post about proposed legislation that would limit federal education funding for schools who want to adapt The New York Times “1619 Project” for classroom use. Stating “race and exploitation are … Read more

Pauli Murray Hall: UNC’s Departments of History, Political Science, and Sociology and the Curriculum on Peace, War, and Defense begin the renaming of Hamilton Hall

The History Department, along with Sociology, Political Science, and Peace, War & Defense have started the process of renaming Hamilton Hall. Our motivation for renaming the building is rooted in the history of our University and Professor Hamilton’s role in … Read more

PhD Candidate Alyssa Bowen: We Need an Academic New Deal

PhD Candidate Alyssa Bowen co-wrote an insightful article for The Nation with William Horne, entitled “We Need an Academic New Deal.” In this thoughtful and timely article, Bowen and Horne analyze the current crisis facing higher education and state demands to … Read more

Robert Colby (PhD ’19) Wins the Allan Nevins Prize for Best Dissertation

Robert Colby, who received his PhD from our department last year, recently won the Society of American Historians’ Allan Nevins Prize for Best Dissertation in American History. Dr. Colby’s dissertation, “The Continuance of an Unholy Traffic: Slave Trading in the … Read more

Prof. Leloudis on the History of UNC’s Responses to Pandemics

Jim Leloudis was recently featured in an article for the News and Observer about the history of UNC’s responses to pandemics. Dr. Leloudis explains that UNC reopened doing the 1918 flu pandemic, and shines a light on this history to encourage North … Read more

Prof. Malinda Maynor Lowery Featured on WUNC

Our very own Malinda Maynor Lowery, Professor of History and Director of the Center for the Study of the American South, was recently featured on WUNC’s The State of Things, hosted by Frank Stasio. She discusses Henry Berry Lowrie and the … Read more

Dr. King Awarded Prize by the Journal of Women’s History

Dr. Michelle King’s article “Margaret Sanger in Translation: Gender, Class, and Birth Control in 1920s China” was awarded the bi-annual “best article” prize by the Journal of Women’s History for the period 2017-2018. The announcement came out yesterday. You can see … Read more

Prof. Sturkey’s Lecture Featured on C-SPAN

C-SPAN has released a broadcast of Prof. William Sturkey’s lecture entitled “Expanding Rights in the 1960s and ’70s.” The lecture, which was part of Dr. Sturkey’s course on American History since 1865, looks at women’s liberation and the gay rights … Read more

John “Rocky” Rhodes (PhD ’16) Promoted to Lieutenant Colonel

John “Rocky” Rhodes, who received his PhD from the Department of History in 2016, received his promotion to Lieutenant Colonel in a ceremony at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. In Rocky’s dissertation, “Agents of Empire: The Frontier U.S. Army and the Transition … Read more

Prof. Turk’s Course on Women at UNC Featured in the DTH

Prof. Katherine Turk’s HIST179H course entitled “Women in the History of UNC-Chapel Hill,” was recently featured in the Daily Tar Heel. Prof. Turk’s course explores the history of women’s experiences at UNC since its founding. Students in the class engage in hands-on … Read more

CFP: The Konrad Jarausch Essay Prize for Advanced Graduate Students

The North Carolina German Studies Seminar and Workshop Series is proud to announce the second annual Konrad Jarausch Essay Prize Competition for Advanced Graduate Students. In recognition of the longstanding commitment to graduate education of Konrad H. Jarausch, who is … Read more

Profs. Jackson & Sturkey Featured in DTH Article on “Life Changing Classes at UNC”

Prof. Jerma Jackson’s 398 section is hailed in the Daily Tar Heel for inspiring an undergrad who wants to be a history teacher. Of Jerma, the student says: “She really does genuinely get to know you and wants to help you … Read more

Bill & Marcie Ferris Receive the 2019 William F. Little Distinguished Service Award

Bill and Marcie Ferris received the 2019 William F. Little Distinguished Service Award, recognizing faculty, staff and volunteers who have served the College through their outstanding leadership above and beyond the duties of their position, in the tradition of Bill … Read more

Congratulation to Cemil Aydin!

Cemil Aydin’s The Idea of the Muslim World: A Global Intellectual History has been long-listed (that is, in the top 10) for the 2019 International Convention of Asia Scholars Book Prize in Social Sciences. Additionally, his book on the Political History … Read more

Prof. Andrews designated “Best Professor” in the Daily Tar Heel

Congratulations to Matt Andrews, who for the third time has been designated “Best Professor” by the Daily Tar Heel in their 2019 list of “Carolina’s Finest.” According to UNC students, Prof. Andrews is “not only the best professor but he … Read more

Dr. Brundage: Pulitzer Prize Finalist

Fitz Brundage was recently named a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in History, for his 2018 publication Civilizing Torture: An American Tradition (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press). The prize committee described Dr. Brundage’s work as “a morally engaging investigation of torture … Read more

DTH Interview with Caroline Newhall on Black POWs in the Confederacy

PhD candidate Caroline Newhall was featured in a recent interview with the Daily Tar Heel ahead of her public “Tell about the South” talk next Wednesday, April 17, hosted by the Center for the Study of the American South. In the … Read more

Prof. Kramer appointed as interim Chair of the Faculty

Prof. Lloyd Kramer will serve in this role from May 8, 2019, when Prof. Leslie Parise steps down, until June 30, 2020, when he will be succeeded by the candidate who wins the next election a year from now. A … Read more

Sarah Shields Inducted into the Frank Porter Graham Society

Sarah Shields has been chosen for membership in the Frank Porter Graham Honor Society. FPGHS recognizes outstanding service provided to the University and community by graduate and professional students enrolled at UNC at Chapel Hill, as well as faculty and … Read more

William Sturkey’s Book Reviewed in the New York Times

William Sturkey’s recent publication, Hattiesburg: An American City in Black and White (Harvard University Press, 2019), is the subject of a review by Jennifer Szalai in the New York Times. Slazai praises Prof. Sturkey’s “cleareyed and meticulous book” for his ability to balance “the … Read more

William Ferris Interviewed by Bomb Magazine

William Ferris has been featured in an interview in Bomb regarding his 2018 Grammy award-winning collection Voices of Mississippi. In this interview, Ferris reflects upon his career as a documentarian of the American South. Read the interview here.

Liz Lundeen Receives UNC Graduate School’s Impact Award

Liz Lundeen received the UNC Graduate School’s Impact Award, an annual honor for graduate students whose research “contribute to a better future for people and communities in North Carolina.” Congratulations, Liz! Read more about her research and the award here.

Bill Ferris Wins Two Grammy Awards

William Ferris, the Joel R. Williamson eminent professor emeritus of history, won two Grammy Awards last Sunday in Los Angeles. His box set “Voices of Mississippi” won best historical album and best album notes. The four-disc set features dozens of … Read more

Dr. Lloyd Kramer is awarded the 2018 Johnson Prize

Dr. Lloyd Kramer is the 2018 recipient of the George H. Johnson Prize for Distinguished Achievement by an IAH Fellow. Click here to read more about this prize and Dr. Kramer’s involvement in the Institute for the Arts and Humanities.

Bill Ferris: Grammy Nominee

Congratulations to Bill Ferris, whose Voices from Mississippi album has been nominated for 2019 Grammy awards for best historical album and best album notes.  Kudos Bill!

Lisa Lindsay receives 2018 Herskovits Prize

Congratulations to Lisa Lindsay, who received the 2018 Herskovits Prize last night for Atlantic Bonds.  The prize is awarded annually by the African Studies Association for the most important scholarly work in African studies.

Dr. Jarausch’s book listed on the Smithsonian Magazine’s Best History Books of 2018

Dr. Konrad Jarausch’s book Broken Lives: How Ordinary Germans Experienced the 20th Century was recently included in Smithsonian Magazine‘s “Best History Books of 2018” list. Congratulations, Dr. Jarausch!

‘Unlikely’ subject pairings lead to deep learning at Carolina

This semester, Prof. Brett Whalen teamed up with Prof. Chris Clemens (Senior Associate Dean for Natural Sciences) to teach “Time and the Medieval Cosmos” as part of the University’s Quality Enhancement Plan. The course was recently featured in an article … Read more

William Sturkey – Recipient of the UNC Diversity Award

William Sturkey is one of only two recipients in the Faculty Category among a faculty of 3,500+ to receive the UNC Diversity Award.  The Diversity Award recognizes significant contribution, time and effort of Carolina community members towards advancing an inclusive … Read more

Guggenheim Fellowship awarded to Dr. Kathleen DuVal

We are very pleased to announce that Dr. Kathleen DuVal has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship. As a Guggenheim Fellow, she will be writing a book on American Indian dominance in the centuries before 1850. She continues the tradition of UNC … Read more

Matt Andrews goes 2 for 2

Matt Andrews goes 2 for 2 in The Daily Tar Heel “Best” Categories. UNC students named his course “History of the Olympics” (HIST 220) the Best UNC Class and Dr. Andrews was named Best Professor. Read more about his thoughts … Read more

Dr. Don Reid and Dr. Daniel Sherman are Special Issue Editors for French Historical Studies volume 41, number 2 (April 2018)

A colloquium held in 2017 in which authors of essays written about May 1986: New Approaches, New Perspectives discussing each other’s work was crucial in the making of this French Historical Studies Special Issue.  Some of the attendees liked the … Read more