Someone's hand points to an old, black-and-white photograph.

Research

The History Department community enjoys extraordinary resources for studying history on and off campus. Undergraduate students can intern at world-class institutions, present their work at conferences and hone their research skills with special projects and seminars. Graduate students engage in research projects throughout their studies, completing in-depth seminars and working alongside faculty members on their latest research projects that span centuries and continents. The Phi Chi chapter of the Phi Alpha Theta honor society also offers students opportunities to showcase their research and network with peers.

History faculty are critically acclaimed authors in their focus areas, and they frequently win GW’s Morton A. Bender, Trachtenberg and Writing in the Disciplines awards for their research-rich curricula.

 

 

Research Around the World

Professor Christopher Brick at his desk listening and recording a podcast

Failing Grade: Are Americans Flunking History?

History professor Christopher Brick has a lesson plan to raise our humanities IQ.

During World War II, Jews in France like Denise Bauman were required to carry identity cards. (Photos Courtesy Ashley Valanzola)

Commemorating History’s Dark Chapter

PhD student Ashley Valanzola is researching the stories of six extraordinary Jewish women—Holocaust survivors who worked to honor the memory of lives lost.

Jamestown colonists trade with Wampanoag Indians at Martha’s Vineyard in this 1597 Theodor de Bry illustration. (Courtesy The Ne

Carving Up the Thanksgiving Story

In his new book, David J. Silverman takes a close look at the traditional Thanksgiving story and the distortion of facts surrounding its legacy for Native Americans.
Eleanor Roosevelt speaking after receiving the 1956 Sidney Hillman public service award at the Commodore Hotel in New York City.

Bringing Eleanor Roosevelt's Legacy to Life

The words, wisdom and remarkable legacy of “The First Lady of the World” are being brought to life in an accessible digital archive through the painstaking work of the Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project, a GW-chartered research center within the Department of History.

Blecher, Khoury and Chapman headshots

Three GW Historians Awarded ACLS Fellowships

In a rare feat for one academic department, three History Department professors — Joel Blecher, Dina Khoury and Erin Chapman — were awarded 2018-19 American Council of Learned Societies Fellowships.

An excerpt from a leaf of the newly discovered manuscript of “Fath al-bari” at the Suleymaniye Library in Istanbul.

Ancient Muslim Manuscripts Unearthed

Assistant Professor Joel Blecher discovered drafts of important works on Islamic thought which date back to the 15th century. The uncovered manuscripts reveal how medieval Islamic scholars drafted and revised their understanding of Muhammad’s teachings to the early Muslim community.