historiography

"Masterless Men" shows how poor whites benefited from slavery's end, but does not diminish the experiences of the enslaved.

Revisiting Holfstadter's "paranoid style" in the era of Trump.

Some issues aren’t amenable to deal making; some principles don’t lend themselves to compromise.

Haiti, not the US or France, was where the assertion of human rights reached its climax in the Age of Revolution.

Historians are losing their audience, and searching for the next trend won’t win it back.

Does recognizing the importance of conservatism in the twentieth century make us see the arc of American history in a new way?

A new history argues that illiberalism is not a backlash but a central feature from the founding to today.

Historian Robin Blackburn has completed a trilogy of books that provide a comprehensive Marxist account of slavery in the New World.

In the American South, an oligarchy of planters enriched itself through slavery. Pervasive underdevelopment is their legacy.

The historical novel isn’t cool. Popular? Yes. Enduring? Yes. A bit, well — for nerds? Also yes. Coolness lies in being at the right place at the right time.

We reviewed thousands of articles, essays, and blog posts last year. Here are some of our favorites.

The resistance and unionism of enslaved and freed Black women in the midst of the Confederacy is an epic story of sacrifice for nation and citizenship.

Economists and historians have been telling us the wrong story about Continental currency for two centuries.

The 1619 Project claimed to reveal the unknown history of slavery. It ended up helping to distort the real history of slavery and the struggle against it.

Recovering the long-overlooked significance of the “hillbilly highway” in the US, with implications for labor history as well as US history broadly.

For a full understanding of any historical period, we must read the literature written while its events were still unfolding.

And the grandmother who wouldn’t let him get away with it.

What happens when radical historians write for the public.

The controversial historian drew criticism from both left and right. We need more like him today.

The invasion of Iraq is the most important foreign policy decision by a U.S. president in the 21st century, so the surfeit of analysis should surprise no one.