Ian Delahanty
Assistant Professor of History
- Doctor of Philosophy, Boston College, Boston, Mass., 2013
- Master of Arts, Boston College, Boston, Mass., 2008
- Bachelor of Arts, Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater, Mass., 2006
Ian Delahanty's teaching and research is guided by the belief that studying the past is essential to understanding the present. He is especially interested in how the 19th century histories of immigration, slavery, and race shaped the development of modern America. Students in his classes explore American history through a variety of primary source materials—letters, diaries, paintings, political cartoons, music, and monuments, to name just a few. Follow him and the History/American Studies major on Twitter @iandelahanty and @spfldcolhist.
Research Interests
- 19th-Century American History
- American Civil War and Reconstruction
- American Immigration and Ethnic History
- Slavery and Emancipation
- Monuments, Commemoration, and Memory
Courses Taught
- Colonial America to the Civil War
- The Civil War to Modern America
- America's Civil War
- American Immigration and Ethnic History
Certifications and Memberships
- Initial License, Secondary Education (Massachusetts, 2006)
- Society of Civil War Historians (2011-present)
- Immigration and Ethnic History Society (2012-present)
- New England Historical Association (2015-present)
- Advisory Committee, Massachusetts Sesquicentennial Commission of the American Civil War (2011-2015)
Selected Works
Presentations
- “From Race Rioters to Soldiers: Racism and Violence in the Civil War North,” presentation delivered at the Society of Civil War Historians Conference (Chattanooga, TN). June 4, 2016: http://scwhistorians.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/2016-SCWH-Program.pdf
- “The Union, Slavery, and Irish Americans in the Civil War," presentation delivered at UMass Lowell Conference: "The Irish in Massachusetts: Historical Significance, Lasting Legacy,” September 26, 2014: http://www.lowellsun.com/todaysheadlines/ci_26610395/umass-lowell-conference-from-literature-civil-war-irish
- Panelist, “Fame, Fortune, and Sweet Liberty: the Irish in America” (part of iFest, an Irish cultural exhibition at the Seaport World Trade Center, Boston, MA). September 27, 2014: http://www.inquest.ie/index.php/showcase/exhibitions/fame-fortune-sweet-liberty-the-irish-in-america/116
- “The Gettysburg Address: An International History," presentation delivered at Boston College symposium: “The 150th Anniversary of the Gettysburg Address,” November 19, 2013: http://www.bc.edu/publications/chronicle/FeaturesNewsTopstories/2013/news/boston-college-celebrates-gettysburg-address-sesquicentennial.html
Publications
- “The Transatlantic Roots of Irish-American Anti-Abolitionism, 1843-1859,” The Journal of the Civil War Era 6, 2 (June 2016): 164-192.
- “Soldiers’ Diaries and Letters,” Essential Civil War Curriculum (online resource directed by the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies at Virginia Tech University): June 2015.
- “‘A Noble Empire in the West’: Young Ireland, the United States, and Slavery,” Britain and the World 6, 2 (September 2013): 171-191.
- "Richard Jordan Gatling and His Gun," We're History (November 5, 2015)
- "'So Nearly White': The Fight to Commission an African American Officer," We're History (May 21, 2015)
- "The Complicated Story of the Irish in the New York City Draft Riots," We're History (March 17, 2015)
Spring 2017 Laurels Submissions
- Ian Delahanty, PhD, assistant professor of history, published “The transatlantic roots of Irish-American anti-abolitionism, 1843-1859” in the Journal of the Civil War Era in June 2016.
- Ian Delahanty, PhD, assistant professor of history, presented “One half of my heart is Ireland’s, the other is America’s: Irish immigrants, nativism, and the meaning of loyalty in 19th-century America” at the Irish History Lecture Series held at the Gaelic-American Club in Fairfield, Conn., in February 2017.
