William Hardin Burnley and the Black Atlantic
April 18, 2019
On April 18, Selwyn R. Cudjoe, Ph.D., professor of Africana Studies at Wellesley College proviced VCU students, faculty and staff to an insight into the life of William Hardin Burnley. Burnley was the largest slave owner in Trinidad during the nineteenth century and the biggest resident slave owner in the British Caribbean. Born in Virginia to English parents, he settled in the island in 1802 and became one of the most influential and prominent agents of the British Empire. The event was part of the Race and Identity series sponsored by the Alexandrian Society and the VCU Department of History.
History Professor Brooke Newman wins a gold medal
April 17, 2019
“A Dark Inheritance: Blood, Race, and Sex in Colonial Jamaica,” (Yale University Press) by Brooke N. Newman, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of History in the College of Humanities and Sciences, has won a 2019 Independent Publisher Book Award.
To read more about her great accomplishment, please see https://www.news.vcu.edu/article/VCU_history_professors_book_wins_gold_medal_2019_Independent.
The Legacy of Slavery: 400 year anniversary
April 18, 2019
2019 marks the four hundred year anniversary of the arrival of the first shipment of enslaved Africans on the shores of mainland British America. These captives were merely the initial group of forced arrivals in what would become successive waves of captives brought to Anglo-America through the late nineteenth century. The year 1619, therefore, was a deeply significant historical event, and centuries later we are compelled to reflect and consider the legacy of slavery in both the United States and Virginia, where these initial captives landed.
In taking stock of this historical moment, the VCU Humanities Research Center (HRC) together with the VCU history department organized a speaker series titled “Virginia’s Past, Present, and Future,” to shed light onto how slavery has shaped the past and continues to impact society locally and nationally. Working in collaboration with HRC director, professor Richard Godbeer, assistant professor of history Michael Dickenson configured his spring 2019 senior seminar “Slavery and Freedom in American History” in conjunction with the speaker series. Guest speakers graciously met with the class after the talk to answer questions about their research and their vision of slavery’s legacy.
“It was a truly a pleasure to enrich my course with such a vibrant and intellectually engaging speaker series,” said Professor Dickenson. “The students benefited immensely from gaining insight into the work of historians and the contemporary implications of historical oppression through intellectual interaction with leading historians and their groundbreaking work.”
The final speaker for the semester was Professor Leslie Harris from Northwestern University who presented “Slavery and the University: Histories and Legacies.”
For more information about Professor Harris’s talk see: http://has.vcu.edu/virginias-past-present-and-future-leslie-harris/
For more information about the 1619 commemoration see: https://humanitiescenter.vcu.edu/humanities-research-center-events/speaker-series/
"Native Southerners" new history of American Indians
March 29, 2019
Please see below the great interview in VCU News with our colleague, Greg Smithers, on his latest book, Native Southerners, which has just been published by the University of Oklahoma Press.
VCU History student creating 3D images for Agecroft Hall collection
March 18, 2019
VCU History student creating 3D images to make Agecroft Hall collection more accessible.
https://news.vcu.edu/article/A_VCU_student_is_creating_3D_images_to_make_Agecroft_Halls_collection
VCU history professor, Emilie Raymond featured in Sammy Davis Jr documentary airing on PBS.
February 25, 2019
A new feature-length documentary, "Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me." that debuted this week as part of PBS' "American Masters" series, features VCU history professor Emilie Raymond, PhD, an expert on 20th-century American politics and culture and author of "Stars for Freedom: Hollywood, Black Celebrities, and the Civil Rights Movement."
Here is a clip from her interview for the documentary:
International sex tourism is a booming industry.
February 18, 2019
It’s also been happening since the 18th century.
VCU history professor Christopher Ewing, Ph.D., talks about his new course, International Sex Tourism 1750-Present.
https://news.vcu.edu/article/International_sex_tourism_is_a_booming_industry
Students uncover stories of enslaved people who lived and worked at Richmond's Wilton House
January 3, 2019
Students uncover stories of enslaved people who lived and worked at Richmond's Wilton House
Six graduate students in the Department of History have been working with Richmond's Wilton House Museum to understand more about the lives and experiences of the enslaved community that labored at the house.
https://news.vcu.edu/article/