Working Historians

In this third episode of our series on how historians research and write on historical topics, the panel explains how they tackle the potentially vast body of existing secondary sources that will help them provide context on the research project. We discuss different ways to search for secondary sources, how to determine which secondary sources might be more useful or important than others, and the historian’s ethical responsibility to be familiar with the entire existing literature on the topic. 

Speaker timeline:

02:42 - CB Repass

In this second episode of our series on how historians research and write on historical topics, the panel tackles the importance and selection of a good research question, which will guide the historian throughout the research process. 

Speaker timeline:

01:00 - CB Repass

With this episode we are launching a new series on how historians research and write on historical topics, starting with the selection of a research topic and ending with the writing process. In this first episode, a panel of historians discuss the initial selection of a research topic.

Speaker timeline:

00:58 - CB Repass

Mathew Merz earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Southern New Hampshire University in 2020 and works as Conflicts Analyst at Akerman LLP. In this episode, Mathew discusses the research, writing, and analytical skills that he learned as a history major which have been particularly useful to his job as a researcher for a law firm.

Recommendations and Links:

Yuval Noah Harari, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind (Random House, 2014) - recommended by Mathew Merz

Derry Girls, created by Lisa McGee, Netflix - recommended by Jimmy

“American Historical Association Action Alert Concerning Proposed History Standards for Virginia (February 2023)” - recommended by Rob

David Gilbert, “Inside a US Neo-Nazi Homeschool Network With Thousands of Members,” Vice News, January 29, 2023

Nilanjana Roy, “How Teen Vogue Got Political,” Financial Times, January 24, 2017

Nina Thomas is the manager of the Westerville History Museum, which is part of the public library system in Westerville, Ohio. In this episode, Nina discusses her academic and professional background, life as a museum manager, the nature of the museum’s public outreach efforts, and what a museum manager might look for in job applicants.

Recommendations:

Westerville History Museum

Clint Smith, How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America (Little, Brown, 2021) - recommended by Nina

Philomena Cunk - recommended by Nina

Jennifer Schuessler, “As Historians Gather, No Truce in the History Wars,” New York Times, January 8, 2023 - recommended by Rob

In this episode, Rob talks to Deb Gogliettino, Associate Dean for online Business Academics at Southern New Hampshire University, about the ways that her undergraduate degree in history has helped her business-oriented career, which included positions in human resources, business administration, and academics. We also discuss how history students can market themselves to non-academic employers.

In this episode, Jimmy and Rob talk to Paul Witcover, Associate Dean for the online Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program at Southern New Hampshire University, about his recent novel, Lincolnstein, and the skills and responsibilities required of authors writing historical fiction. 

Recommendations:

Paul Witcover, Lincolnstein (PS Publishing, 2021) - recommended by Rob

Victor Klemperer, I Will Bear Witness (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1998) - recommended by Paul Witcover

Meet Me in the Bathroom, Will Lovelance, Dylan Southern, and Andrew Cross, dirs., (2022) - recommended by Jimmy

The Civil War, Ken Burns, dir. (1990) - recommended by Rob

In this second episode on the Black Death, the Spanish Flu, and Covid-19, Rob Denning, James Fennessy, and Scotty Edler discuss the long-term political, social, economic, and cultural consequences of the plague and the flu, and they attempt to use those precedents to predict the long-term effects of Covid-19 on our own future lives.

During the next two episodes, Rob and James talk to Scotty Edler about his research into the causes and consequences of three major disease epidemics: the Black Death, the Spanish Flu, and Covid-19. Here we discuss the historical contexts of each disease and the lessons learned from each outbreak.

In this episode, Rob presents his research into quick questions from his employer's communications office regarding the history of the Juneteenth Holiday. He does not provide quick answers.