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Center for Public History

Center for Public History

CENTER FOR PUBLIC HISTORY

Making history matter in Houston, where the local is global

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News & Events

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    CPH Event Calendar

    A combination of CPH Lecture Series events, Research Colloquiums, and other CPH sponsored events

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    Houston History magazine's Thanksgiving Special

    This Thanksgiving, let people know you’re thankful for them with a free gift subscription to Houston History magazine! From now through November 18th, purchase an individual Houston History magazine subscription for yourself and receive one free year-long gift subscriptions.


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    Harris County Historical Society Award for Excellence

    The Harris County Historical Society presents an annual award for excellence to an undergraduate or graduate student for a public history project focused on Houston or Harris County history. Submit your project by May 15th, 2025.


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    An Alliance of Chinese Immigrants and Mississippi Delta Elites against School Segregation: U.S. SupremeCourt cases Lum v. Rice (1927) and Lun v. Bond (1929). 

    Join us on October 30th, 4:00-5:20pm, in Cougar Village, for a guest lecture by Dr. Susan Brownwell, Professor of History at UMSL, on the fight against segregation in the Mississippi Delta.
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    MMI Student Prize Competition

    Submit your media related project to the Media and Moving Image Student Prize Competition! Offering a 750 dollar cash prize, the competition is accepting entries in Critical, Creative, and Applied Categories. Submit before the April 16th deadline.
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    Celebrating the 2024 Summer Internship in Public History and Digital Humanities

    This past summer, 18 undergraduates from across the UH campus participated in the Summer Internship in Public History and Digital Humanities (SIPHDH).
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    *New Episode*: Discovering Power in the Past: The Algorithms and Power Systems Architecture Project

    Now available! In the newest episode of the Center for Public History’s podcast Public Historians at Work, research historian Dr. Julie Cohn and electrical engineers Drs. Daniel Molzahn and Sairaj Dhople discussed their project on the history of “electrifying.”
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    Data + Feminism = Equality?

    Now available! Watch the virtual panel on the intersection of data science and feminism, hosted on Women’s Equality Day to celebrate the Sharing Stories from 1977’s project launch of their new webpage “Researching the NWC!"
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    UH Remembers 9-11

    Members of the UH community will gather again for a "UH Remembers 9/11" event, Wednesday, September 11th, 2024, which will included the posting of the colors by the Color Guard and remarks from UH leaders, students, as well as representatives of the armed forces. The Carillon Bell rang 11 times at 9:11 a.m.
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    Houston History magazine Launch! Doing Preservation in Houston!

    Join us on September 12th to celebrate Houston History magazine's latest issue with a panel of guest speakers, disscussing historical preservation in Houston.
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    CPH 40th Anniversary Celebration!

    Join us October 10th for two panels featuring CPH directors and UH public history alumni, and a special keynote address by Dr. Denise Meringolo, President of the National Council on Public History. 
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    From the CPH Archives: Cultivating Public Memory During Disease and Disaster: Richard Mizelle

    Watch Dr. Richard Mizelle discuss with Dr. Wes Jackson his book Backwater Blues: The 1927 Mississippi River Flood in the African American Imagination and the relationship of past and ongoing health crises. 
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    From the CPH Archives: When the Lights (and Heat) Went Out in Texas: The Texas Blackout in Historical Context

    Watch panelists Dr. Martin Melosi, Dr. Julia A. Cohn, and Dr. David E. Nye discuss the history of blackouts in Texas, following winter storm Uri in Febuary of 2022. They also discuss the causes and consequences of said blackouts.
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    From the CPH Archives: Three Feathers - Storytelling and Restorative Justice in Northern Indigenous Communities

    Watch director Carla Ulrich and the film team discuss the making of, Three Feathers, a story of restorative justive and a celebration of the natural beauty and the indigenous communities in Canda's northern territories!
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    Graduate Assistant Exhibit Curator Available

    The Carey C. Shuart Women's Archive & Research Collection is seeking a graduate assistant curator!

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    Debbie Harwell’s award-winning book lands powerful theatrical adaptation

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    Houston History launch with Engines of our Ingenuity

    Houston History celebrates its most recent issue, highlighting Dr. John Lienhard and Engines of Our Ingenuity

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    UH Historians team up with engineers to understand the future of the power grid

    The interdisciplinary, multi-university collaboration will use oral histories to help shed light on the development of the North American power grid.

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    Public Historians At Work Season 2

    The second season of Public Historians at Work is complete! Listen in to this podcast for discussions about health care, medicine, and accessibility and how public history can bring these subjects to the public. 

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    Watch Dr. Tey M. Nunn's Talk on Women's History at the Smithsonian!

    Kicking off Women's History Month, the Sharing Stories from 1977 project hosted Dr. Tey M. Nunn from the Smithsonian to discuss the Women's History initiative!

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    Accessing Disability History

    The final episode of season 2 is now available. Listen in as Dr. Cathy Kudlick and Fran Osborne talk about their public exhibit featuring the 504 Sit-In and its numerous features that allow for greater accessability.

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    Valuing Emotion Around HIV/AIDS

    Episode five is now available! Featuring a conversation with Dr. Stephen Vider about the importance of capturing feeling when doing pubic history and emphasizing the ethical responsibility to honor people’s bodily and emotional responses to history.

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    Archiving Cancer Care at MD Anderson

    This episode features a conversation with Javier Garza, Senior Library Analyst and Archivist at MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Historical Resources Center about the role of archivists in the world of medicine. 

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    CPH Associate Director Contributes to New Podcast

    Dr. Nancy Beck Young contributes to Rachel Maddow's newest podcast, Ultra.

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    CLASS Public History Student Recovers Latinx History as Smithsonian Predoc

    Allison Sáenz is starting her tenure as a Latino Museum Studies Program predoctoral fellow by the National Museum of American History (NMAH) and National Museum of the American Latino (NMAL) in Washington D.C. 

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    Hate Speech and the Return of Antisemitism

    The Boniuk Charitable Foundation at Rice University, and Department of Modern and Classical Languages at the University of Houston invite you to register for the first in a series of public summits addressing Hate Speech - Crisis and Conversation.

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    Public Historians At Work Podcast: Amplifying History in Healthcare

    Season two of Public Historians at Work is underway as episode two is now available online for listening. This episode features a conversation with Dr. Ronit Stahl about America’s healthcare system and how viewing our modern institutions and systems through the lens of history can help to make sense of the present.

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    Holocaust Museum Houston Workshop

    This past Friday, the Center for Public History and the Holocaust Museum Houston hosted a day-long workshop for students, faculty, and community members on how the museum staff work with board members and the larger community to host exhibits, preserve artifacts and create outreach and learning programs.

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    Season 2 Podcast Kicks Off with Dr. Merlin Chowkwanyun, "Making Big Data Talk for Public Health"

    Listen to Dr. Josiah Rector and Dr. Merlin Chowkwanyun talk collaboration between big data and the humanities, "Toxic Docs," and finding a seat at the table of public health discussions. 

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    Dr. Julie Cohn on the “Green” Transformations to the Power Grid 

    In a recent article published by the Baker Institute for Public Policy, Julie Cohn – research historian in the Center for Public History - describes the many challenges presented when transferring from traditional grid energy to green energy.

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    Dr. Debbie Harwell and Dr. Todd Romero Talk with Fox 26 News about Resilient Houston Project

    On the five year anniversary of Hurricane Harvey, Dr. Debbie Harwell and Dr. Todd Romero speak with Ahmed Sharma about the importance of collecting oral histories from those effected by Hurricane Harvey.

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    University of Houston Students Reflect on CITE Internship Program

    This past summer, the Center for Public History launched a ten-week summer undergraduate internship program guided by faculty from the College of Technology and College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences.

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    Dr. Todd Romero Featured on Houston Matters

    Listen in as Dr. Todd Romero speaks with Houston Matters on the five year anniversary of Hurricane Harvey about Houston storm readiness and how the Resilient Houston project shows the impact of storms on Houstonians. 

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    Students uncover decades of history in CPH's 100 Years of Stories Project

    This summer, the Center for Public History will mark two years of documenting the intertwined histories of the city of Houston and the University of Houston through 100 Years of Stories.

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    Celebrating 100 Years, HPM Collaboration

    CPH, Houston Public Media, and the UH Libraries are celebrating the articles, videos, and student research for the 100 Years project, made possible by Carey C. Shuart.

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    Coins are key to the ancient Mediterranean world

    CPH affiliate faculty member, Dr. Kristina Neumann receives review from Bryn Mawr Classical Review for her book, Antioch in Syria: a history from coins (300 BCE-450 CE)

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    Zarnow Contributes 'Honet Reflection' of Trump's Complicated History with Feminist Activism 

    CPH affiliate faculty member Zarnow was asked to provide insight and perspective in the first draft of an overview of Trump's presidency, assessing how women experienced the Trump years and their influence within his White House. 

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    Public History Student, Jovan Slaughter, Wins Media and Moving Image Prize

    CPH Instructional Assistant, Jovan Slaughter, has won a UH Media and Moving Image prize for his podcast episode, "Feeding the Third Ward."   

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    Dr. Mark Goldberg Leads Oral History Project on Latinx Sephardic Jews in Houston

    CPH affiliate Dr. Mark Goldberg, director of the UH Jewish Studies Program, led 16 students to partner with the Holocaust Museum Houston to produce oral histories of Latinx Sephardic Jewish Communities in Houston.  

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    History PhD Student, Caitlyn Jones Receives TSHA Fellowship

    Congratulations to Caitlyn Jones on her Research Fellowship in Texas History!


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    New Book Publication, Dr. Kristina Neumann

    Congratulations to CPH Steering Committee member, Dr. Kristina Neumann on her new book publication with Cambridge University Press!


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    CPH Announces New Project

    Looking ahead to UH’s centennial celebration in 2027, 100 Years of Stories is an interactive public history initiative grounded in UH student research that showcases the important role the University has had played in shaping the city.”


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    Drs. Nancy Beck Young and Leandra Zarnow Secure NEH grant

    Congratulations to Drs. Nancy Beck Young and Leandra Zarnow on their NEH grant! Their grant project, “Sharing Stories from 1977: Putting the National Women’s Conference on the Map,” will be run through the UH Center for Public History.


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    CPH Launches New Podcast - Public Historians at Work

    CPH is pleased to announce a new podcast series where we speak with academics, artists, and community members about what it means to do history and humanities work for and with the public.


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    Eldrewey Stearns: A Houston History Passing

    Houston History magazine and the UH Libraries, Special Collections remember a Houston civil rights leader


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    Honoring the Legacy of Dr. Jim Conyers

    CPH reflects on collaborations with the beloved director of the UH African American Studies program


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    2021 Provost Teaching Excellence Awards

    CPH celebrates the Teaching Excellence Awards for three CPH affiliates

     

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    CPH Associate Director Awarded Moores Professorship

    Dr. Nancy Beck Young, full Professor in the UH History Department, has been named a Moores Professor


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    Prestigious NEH Grant Awarded

    CPH affiliate faculty member, Dr. Kristina Neumann receives NEH funding for digital exploration of Syrian culture


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    2022 CITE Summer Internship Program 

    The Center for Public History hosts 2022 CITE Summer Internship Program


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PROJECTS

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    Houston

    History

    The voice of history and culture through the Houston area. 

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    CPH

    Podcast:

    Public

    Historians

    at

    Work

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    Sharing

    Stories

    from

    1977

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    100
    Years 
    of 
    Stories

    Documenting a Century at the University of Houston.

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    SYRIOS

    An NEH-funded, online exhibit, which focuses on a dynamic presentation of Syrian material culture – especially coins – and the stories of Syrian cities within the Greco-Roman period.

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    CPH

    Lecture

    Series

    Supporting humanities and the professions at the University of Houston.

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    Resilient

    Houston:

    Documenting

    Hurricane Harvey

    A multi-faceted oral history project.

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    The
    UH
    Oral
    History
    of Houston

    A comprehensive effort to identify important and interesting Houstonians.

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    The
    Gulf
    Coast
    Food
    Project

    Promotes the study of food and encourages cross-disciplinary dialogue and collaboration within our diverse communities.

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    Houston
    History
    Archives

    Collects, preserves, and disseminates resources vital to the study of Houston’s history.

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    To

    Bear

    Fruit

    for

    Our Race

    To capture and share an important and rarely told story about African American professionals.

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    UH

    Memories

    Project

    The film will tell the story of how the university and its host city have grown together.

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    Wednesdays

    in

    Mississippi: 

    Civil Rights as Women’s Work

    Aims to preserve the legacy these women who worked successfully to change the face of race relations in Mississippi. 

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    CPH

    Event

    Archives 

    A composite of past events hosted and supported by the Center for Public History. 

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Welcome Wilson Houston History Collaborative

In 2014, under the major gift from Welcome W. Wilson, Sr. to the Center for Public History, the Houston History Project was renamed the Welcome Wilson Houston History Collaborative.  The Welcome Wilson Houston History Collaborative consists of Houston History magazine, the UH Oral History of Houston, the UH Houston History Archives, and the UH Memories Project.

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