Adrian Finucane Receives NEH Award for Summer Institute

Adrian Finucane, associate professor of history, received a 2022 Award from the National Endowment for the Humanities to host a three-week interdisciplinary institute on the history of the book in the American Revolution. The institute will be held in June of 2022. The National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institutes are an opportunity for College and University instructors to study topics in the humanities in depth. 

This institute, “The Revolution in Books,” draws on the strengths of the FAU Libraries by introducing participants to the rich resources of the Marvin and Sybil Weiner Spirit of America Collection and the Jaffe Center for Book Arts. Co-directors Adrian Finucane of the Department of History and Victoria Thur of Special Collections in the FAU Libraries will welcome 25 participants from throughout the United States who will learn about the importance of printed material to the circulation of the ideals of the American Revolution.

The sessions will combine readings and discussions on theoretical aspects of book history with hands-on experience with rare books and workshops that allow participants to create their own paper, use a historic printing press, and experience the process of constructing a book. This practice will provide a deep understanding of the book as not only a collection of text but also a historical object produced by the labor of a diverse group of Americans who were key actors in the history of the United States. While learning about the history of the creation and use of books, participants will develop ideas about how to bring their new skills back to the classroom. 

Finucane’s research interests include contact among peoples in the early modern Atlantic world, the history of race and gender in early European colonies, and the history of beliefs about witchcraft in early America. She has held fellowships through the John Carter Brown Library, the Charles Warren Center for Studies in Early American History, and the USC-Huntington Early Modern Studies Institute. Finucane received her Ph.D. in history from Harvard University. The “Revolution in Books” has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom. For more information about NEH grants, visit  www.neh.gov

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