Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture

09/15/2026

In the July 2026 issue of the 𝑊𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑄𝑢𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑦, Marcus P. Nevius reviews Julia Wallace Bernier’s 𝐹𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑑𝑜𝑚’𝑠 𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑦: 𝑆𝑙𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦, 𝐶𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑚, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑆𝑒𝑙𝑓-𝑃𝑢𝑟𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑠.

This review highlights Bernier’s account of how enslaved people negotiated self-purchase, relied on Black community networks, and confronted a system that treated both their bodies and their freedom as property: https://bit.ly/4AeIYDt

What did it mean to put a price on freedom?


Mizzou

09/12/2026

What happens when an olive branch is paired with a rod?

In “The Olive Branch and the Rod: John Dickinson’s Project in British Context,” David Como (Stanford University) places Dickinson’s last efforts to preserve the British-American union within the competing plans for conciliation circulating in 1774–75.

Visit https://bit.ly/4yyupcn to learn how the article shows threats of force and gestures toward compromise hardened positions on both sides of the Atlantic—and helps explain why the middle ground collapsed.

09/08/2026

Looking for a supportive, small-group environment to collaborate with fellow scholars and receive feedback on your research this academic year? Applications are now open for the 2026–2027 OI Coffeehouses.

These virtual tables provide a unique, collegial space for deep discussion, methodological exploration, and feedback on works in progress. Participants are expected to commit to regular attendance throughout the academic year.

This year's sessions include:
▪️𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐞, 𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐖𝐚𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐕𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚 – Convened by Casey Schmitt (Cornell University)
▪️𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚: 𝐀 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 – Convened by Lucas Kelley (Valparaiso University) and Aubrey Lauersdorf (FSU Department of History)
▪️𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞, 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐕𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚 – Convened by Edward Blum (San Diego State University)
▪️𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐧 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫, 𝐄𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞-𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐀𝐭𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝, 𝟏𝟓𝟓𝟎–𝟏𝟖𝟓𝟎 – Convened by Claire Becker (University of Rochester) and Sarabeth Rambold (Southern Methodist University)

⚠️ Seats are limited for each table, so apply early.
📅 Application Deadline: September 11, 2026
🔗 Learn more and submit your application here:

Apply by September 11 for a seat at one of the new OI Coffeehouse tables!

09/04/2026

Applications are open for four OI Coffeehouses, bringing scholars together for sustained conversation, feedback, and community throughout the academic year. Choose from:

• New Approaches to the Study of Peace, Violence, and War in Vast Early America
• Writing Across Regions in Native North America: A Writing Group for Second Book Projects
• The States of Information: Knowledge, Networks, and Secrecy in Vast Early America
• Working Group on Gender, Emotion, and Knowledge-Making in the Early Atlantic World, 1550–1850

Seats are limited. Review the descriptions and application requirements, then apply by September 11, 2026: https://vastearly.am/4xxMfMB

Know a scholar whose work belongs in one of these conversations? Share this opportunity with them.

08/31/2026

On International Day for People of African Descent, we honor the histories, knowledge, resilience, and world-changing contributions of people of African descent across the globe.

A timely review in the July 2026 𝑊𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑄𝑢𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑦 highlights Mary E. Hicks’s 𝐶𝑎𝑝𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑚𝑜𝑝𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑠: 𝐵𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑘 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑙𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑆𝑜𝑢𝑡ℎ 𝐴𝑡𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑆𝑙𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦, a deeply researched study that centers Black mariners in the interconnected histories of slavery, freedom, mobility, medicine, commerce, and culture: https://bit.ly/4gLLf0g

Tamara J. Walker’s review shows how these seafarers—“cosmopolitans by compulsion, not choice”—developed languages, navigational expertise, healing practices, legal arguments, and networks of solidarity while confronting the violence and precarity of enslavement. Their lives compel us to recognize people of African descent not simply as subjects of history, but as makers of Atlantic worlds.


Barnard College

08/29/2026

Individual rights are never merely abstract. They are tested in courts, prisons, workplaces, and in whose voice history allows us to hear.

For Individual Rights Day, read Diana Louis’ review of Robin Bernstein’s 𝐹𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛’𝑠 𝐶ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑒, which examines forced labor, racialized criminality, due process, and the difficult work of restoring agency to a person portrayed by his era as criminal, monstrous, or insane: https://bit.ly/46rnQMK


University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts

08/24/2026

Christopher L. Brown delves into Nicholas Radburn’s pivotal work, 𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑀𝑒𝑛: 𝑀𝑒𝑟𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑎𝑡𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑆𝑙𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑇𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑒, featured in the April 2026 issue of the 𝑊𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑄𝑢𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑦: https://vastearly.am/3UkbLWU

According to Brown, Radburn’s insightful analysis illuminates the dynamic changes in the British slave trade during the pivotal 18th century, revealing how institutional transformations reshaped trading practices and expanded marketplaces across West Africa and the Americas. By meticulously examining merchant logs, account books, and the groundbreaking Slave Voyages database, Radburn not only sheds light on the complex networks of commerce but also highlights the stories of those who navigated these turbulent waters.

Join us as we honor interdisciplinary scholarship that enriches our understanding of Vast Early America and the intricate histories that connect us all.


Yale University Press | Columbia University

08/23/2026

In the April 2026 𝑊𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑄𝑢𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑦, "To and Fro by Canoo and Boat” traces how enslaved workers created the transport canals that connected South Carolina plantations to Charleston and helped launch the colony’s export economy between 1690 and 1740: https://vastearly.am/4zzPjcy

This article by Virginia McGee Richards and Peter H. Wood also reveals how those same waterways became routes of resistance and rebellion.


CU Boulder History Department

08/21/2026

Immigration policy in the U.S. isn't just about policing modern national borders—it has a deep, complex history rooted in federalism, state regulations, and the status of enslaved and Native peoples.

In "Read More Books: Immigration is about Staying Put, too.", Karin Wulf () talks with Anna Law () about her book, "Migration and the Origins of American Citizenship." Together, they explore how American Political Development (APD), historical state laws, and the shift toward centralized federal control inform today's migration debates.

Read the full Q&A here: https://vastearly.am/4gaVAT0

08/19/2026

In the April 2026 issue of the 𝑊𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑄𝑢𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑦, David N. Gellman reviews Michael J. Douma's compelling work, 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑆𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝐷𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑆𝑙𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑖𝑛 𝐷𝑢𝑡𝑐ℎ 𝑁𝑒𝑤 𝑌𝑜𝑟𝑘: 𝐴 𝐶𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑙, 𝐸𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑐, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐷𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑝ℎ𝑖𝑐 𝐻𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦, 1700–1827, which challenges traditional narratives of slavery in northern America: https://vastearly.am/4qqgAtH

Douma's groundbreaking analysis reveals that a significant portion—up to 40%—of enslaved individuals in eighteenth-century New York spoke Dutch, reflecting the enduring influence of Dutch culture post-English rule. By diving deep into census records and economic dynamics, Douma urges historians to reassess the complexities of New York slavery beyond the urban focus, emphasizing the crucial role of rural economies.

This work not only invigorates the discourse surrounding mid-Atlantic slavery but also illustrates the need for innovative methodologies in historical research. Douma’s findings open new pathways for understanding the interplay of language, culture, and slavery, promising to enrich the scholarly exploration of this pivotal era.


DePauw University