Penelope Ismay

Penelope Ismay is an Associate Professor in the History Department at Boston College. Her research focuses on the social history of modernity, particularly in Britain and the British Empire, examining themes like economic trust, urbanization, and the role of associational life in shaping societal structures.

• Education:
  • B.S., U.S. Naval Academy
  • M.S., National Intelligence University
  • M.A., St. John’s College
  • Ph.D., University of California Berkeley

Her research explores how radical economic and social transformations during modernity were navigated through institutions like friendly societies. She teaches courses on early modern and modern Britain, revolution and social trust in Europe, money and credit, women and work, marriage and family, and sociability in historical contexts.

Key publications include:

• Trust Among Strangers: Friendly Societies in Modern Britain (2018)
• Between Providence and Risk (2015)
• Trust Among Strangers: Securing British Modernity (2010)

Her current project, tentatively titled The Boundaries of Self-Interest, investigates how Britons conceptualized self-interest during economic growth in the late 19th century.