Past Conferences

The McNeil Center for Early American Studies, 1838 Black Metropolis, and the Library Company of Philadelphia will be partnering together to host “Black Philadelphia in the 18th and 19th Centuries” on February 20-22,…

The McNeil Center is proud to be a sponsor of the 8th national Slave Dwelling Project Conference October 3-5 in Philadelphia. This year’s theme, The Illusion of Freedom: Slavery in the Northern States seeks to explore…

Archives of Revolution:  A Conference About How We Make the Past June 20-22, 2024 The John Carter Brown Library at Brown University

New Legal Histories of the American Revolution October 19-21, 2023 Co-sponsored by Penn Carey Law and the McNeil Center for Early American Studies

Facing the Future of Early American Studies Please join us for “Facing the Future of Early American Studies,” a conference reflecting on the scholarship and mentorship of Daniel K. Richter, director emeritus of the…

With the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence just three years away, many archives and museums are turning their attention to planning for the United States’ semiquincentennial. Philadelphia institutions…

Co-sponsored by the Cleveland State University Department of History and the McNeil Center for Early American Studies  

"Somerset v Steuart @ 250: Facts, Interpretations, and Legacies" Conference 1-2 December 2022

"War Stories: Conflict in the Atlantic World, 1600-1850" Conference17-19 November 2022

As scholars of early America, we aim to respond to the current climate crisis and better understand the depth and ramifications of its roots in the early modern era through a workshop dedicated to the topic.