I am a historian of the early United States, with particular interests in political culture, popular politics, and dissent. I also think, teach, and write about historical memory, especially with regard to monuments, public space, and popular culture. My book The American Liberty Pole: Popular Politics and the Struggle for Democracy in the Early Republic was published with the University of Virginia Press in 2023.
I am an Assistant Professor of U.S. History at Saint Mary’s University. I received my PhD in History from the University of Virginia in 2019. Before coming to SMU, I was the University College Fellow in Early American History at the University of Toronto.
My writing has been published in the Journal of the Early Republic, The Washington Post, The Toronto Star, TIME, The Chronicle Herald, Inside Higher Ed, The Conversation, Nursing Clio, and American Revolutions. I have appeared as a guest on BBC Radio, CBC Radio, CBC News, CTV News, Ben Franklin’s World Podcast, The Whiskey Rebellion Podcast, Conversations at the Washington Library, and Witch, Please.
In my ever-decreasing spare time, I enjoy playing soccer and ultimate frisbee. I am also an avid theatre-goer and have successfully completed an embarrassing number of escape rooms.