Lisa Lindsay, an associate professor of history in UNC’s College of Arts and Sciences, was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to support her research.
The John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, based in New York City, appoints fellows based on prior achievement and exceptional promise in research and artistic creation.
Lindsay’s current project is “Atlantic Bonds: A Family History through Slavery, Freedom and Colonization.” She will link African and United States history, tracing the life history of an African American man who left South Carolina for West Africa in the 1850s, looking for his roots. She will examine his journey from the antebellum South to Liberia and then present-day Nigeria and his participation in warfare, mission Christianity and early colonialism. Through the story of this little-known figure, she will highlight the place of diasporic people in the history of colonial Africa and illuminate the comparative history of slavery, freedom and citizenship in different parts of the Atlantic world.
The foundation awarded 181 fellowships to a diverse group of scholars, artists and scientists across 54 disciplines and from 77 academic institutions. The candidates were chosen from among a group of almost 3,000 applicants. Many Nobel, Pulitzer and other prize winners are fellowship alumni.
More on Lisa Lindsay: http://tinyurl.com/cuax4p9
Foundation news release: http://tinyurl.com/bs9kfqd
List of 2012 fellows: http://tinyurl.com/cw3jxpv
