Brian Schoen

Brian Schoen serves as Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of History at Ohio University's College of Arts and Sciences, holding the James Richard Hamilton/Baker and Hostetler Professorship of Humanities. His teaching spans foundational U.S. history surveys to specialized courses on capitalism, the Civil War, and the American South.

His academic credentials include a B.A. from the University of Arkansas and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in History from the University of Virginia.

Schoen's research probes the transnational dimensions of 19th-century America, emphasizing how global economic forces and international relations shaped domestic politics, slavery, and secession. His work reveals cotton's pivotal role in binding sectional interests to worldwide markets while exposing how European perceptions influenced American statecraft during the Civil War era. This scholarship bridges political economy, diplomatic history, and social analysis to reframe U.S. history within Atlantic and global contexts.

Analysis of his recent publications shows consistent focus on cotton's geopolitical power, the international resonance of secession debates, and the Civil War's reverberations across empires and republics. His methodology integrates economic data with ideological analysis to demonstrate how global capitalism and foreign policy concerns drove domestic conflict.

Schoen's scholarly recognition includes:

• Bennett H. Wall Award (2010) for The Fragile Fabric of Union
• Ohio Center of the Book’s Great Books selection (2023) for Settling Ohio
• Fulbright Canada Research Chair appointment (2023)
• Mary Ball Washington Professorship (2014-15)

He mentors M.A. students in 19th-century U.S. history while directing major research initiatives funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, Fulbright Commission, and Filson Institute. As co-editor of Ohio University Press's New Approaches to Midwestern Studies series and Journal of the Early Republic editorial board member, he shapes scholarly discourse beyond his institution.