معرفی
Carol Wilson is the Arthur A. and Elizabeth R. Knapp Professor of American History at Washington College. She specializes in early national and antebellum African-American history, focusing on racial identity, slavery, and freedom. Her research examines the fluid boundaries of racial categories in pre-Civil War America, including the kidnapping of free blacks and cases of mistaken racial identity.
Education:
- B.A., University of Delaware, 1984
- M.A., University of Akron, 1986
- Ph.D., West Virginia University, 1991
Research Interests: Her work challenges assumptions about rigid racial hierarchies, exploring how legal and social systems destabilized freedom for African Americans. She has investigated cases like Sally Miller, where racial ambiguity led to enslavement, and traced the lived experiences of enslaved individuals tied to Washington College’s history.
Student Collaborations: Since 2018, she has led student researchers in uncovering Washington College’s ties to slavery, using archival records, wills, and court documents to document enslaved individuals’ contributions. Earlier projects include a study of Eastern Shore abolitionists like Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, showcased in the Gibson Center for the Arts.
Professional Engagements: She has consulted on media projects including PBS’s History Detectives (on Patty Cannon), NBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?, and the film Twelve Years a Slave. She has been interviewed by NPR and Smithsonian magazine for her expertise on historical slavery narratives.
