Pod-Textualizing the Past

Dr. Bridget Marshall (English-University of Massachusetts-Lowell) discusses accusations of witchcraft and witchcraft trials in British North America, focusing on two cases (Mary Parsons and Mary Webster) that took place before the Salem trials in 1692-1693.  You can follow her on twitter @factorygothic. 

Dr. Christy Clark-Pujara, (Associate Professor, Afro-American Studies at the University of Wisconsin) discusses slavery in New England in this podcast.  Although we typically think about slavery as being a story of the American South, Dr. Clark-Pujara dispels that myth and explains how northern states profited from slave labor.  She is the author of Dark Work:  The Business of Slavery in Rhode Island.

Janalyn Moss (History Librarian at the University of Iowa) talks to us about the man, the musical and the world of Alexander Hamilton.  By contextualizing the musical, this discussion examines how “Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story,” shapes our understanding of Hamilton and the Revolutionary era.  This episode includes short excerpts from the musical and is intended for educational purposes only. 

Fair Use Notice: This episode of the Pod-textualizing the Past contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner.We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of history and politics in an educational setting. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material in this podcast episode is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.If you wish to use copyrighted material from this podcast for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.Last updated: July 10, 2020

Rachel Snell (Ph.D. History, University of Maine) studies food and food writing as a way to understand the lived experience of early American women.  Focused on the 18th Century, this interview examines women’s kitchen labor, Amelia Simmons, author of the first American cookbook, and the ritual of baking Election Cake. 

Lindsay Reinpold (History-UTEP), a recent graduate of the MA program at UTEP and middle school history teacher discusses female soldiers in the American Revolution.  Her study of Elizabeth Zane, Margaret Cochran Corbin, and Deborah Sampson uncovers details of their lives and service while providing analysis of the influence of gender norms during the revolution and these women’s lives afterward.

Dr. Kristen Hillaire Glasgow (Ph.D. History, U.C.L.A.) discusses Charlotte Forten, a young woman of color in the 1850s who is an anti-slavery activist.  Using Forten’s diary of her teenaged years as a focal point, Glasgow examines her thoughts and perspective shedding new light on the abolition movement. 

Dr. Angela Keysor (Allegheny College, History) examines illness and its treatment during the eighteenth Century in British North America, with a particular focus on smallpox epidemics.  As we experience a pandemic in the twenty-first century, how different was the colonial American experience and it what ways is it the same. 

Dr. Holly Pinheiro (Augusta University, History) discusses the impact of the Civil War on African American soldiers and their families based on his forthcoming book from the University of Georgia Press.  Dr. Pinheiro examines why men enlisted, how they were treated, and the ways their service shaped families during the war and beyond. 

Dr. Timothy Johnson (University of Minnesota, Political Science) is interviewed about the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Marbury v. Madison(1803).  Beyond the significance of Judicial Review, the legal doctrine established in this decision, Johnson describes the development of the Court during the early republic and explains the politics behind this decision.

Robert Diaz (UTEP-History) is interviewed about how the war with Mexico was experienced in the El Paso area as well as the fluidity of borders both at the time of this war and in more recent history. The Battle of Brazito is also discussed.