The End of the Historical Enterprise
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The End of the Historical Enterprise Washington History Seminar Wilson Center, Washington, D.C. March 11, 2013
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History today often seems deeply divided, as public historians and educators complain about the disengagement of academics and college and university professors pursue increasingly esoteric subjects of research. Robert Townsend will speak on the findings of his recent book, History's Babel, which looks back to the early decades of the historical enterprise to show how efforts to professionalize pushed history specialists (in archives, historical societies, and teaching) away from each other. This seminar presentation will offer a wide-ranging discussion of the many different professions of history and what they mean for the discipline.
Transcript of The End of the Historical Enterprise
The End of the Historical Enterprise
Washington History SeminarWilson Center, Washington, D.C.
March 11, 2013
Comparative Timelines for Disciplinary Histories
The Historical Enterprise
The AHA’s Original Mission
The AHA was established “for the promotion of historical studies, the collection and preservation of historical documents and artifacts, and the dissemination of historical research.”
Congressional Charter, 1889
Number of AHA Committees Devoted to Activity, 1843 to 1945
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
Public History
Research Scholarship
Teaching and Pedagogy
Tools and Materials
Key Figures
Reuben Gold ThwaitesWisconsin Hist. Soc.
Henry JohnsonColumbia Teacher’s Coll.
Solon BuckNational Archives
Lucy SalmonVassar Coll.
Waldo Gifford LelandAHA and ACLS.
Albert Bushnell HartHarvard Univ.
Teaching Archives and Societies
History PhDs Conferred, 1873 to 1950
1890-1900 1901-1910 1911-20 1921-30 1931-40 1941-500
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
1800
PhD ProgramsHistory PhDs
Average Years Undergraduate Study to History PhD
1881* 1900 1920 19400
2
4
6
8
10
12
Publication of History Dissertations, 1880 to 1925
1880 to 1900
(N=52)
1900 to 1909
(N=157)
1910 (N=17)
1915 (N=31)
1920 (N=22)
1925 (N=33)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120in Serial
by Book Pub-lisher
A Crisis in Scholarly Production
Marcus W. JerneganUniv. of Chicago
AHA Membership in History-related Positions, 1884 to 1940
K-12
Archi
ves/L
ibra
ry
State
/Loc
al H
istor
y
Feder
al H
istor
ian
Other
Hist
orica
l Org
aniza
tion
Publis
hing
4-Yea
r Col
lege
/Uni
vers
ity
Teach
ers/C
omm
unity
Col
lege
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%1884 (N=220)
1911 (N=2,755)
1920 (N=2,348)
1940 (N=3,063)
Growth in Nationally Recognized Historical Societies
1893 1905 1916 1926 1936 19440
200
400
600
800
1,000
1,200
1,400
1,600
Growth in States with Archival Programs
1900 1905 1910 1915 1920 1925 1930 1935 1940 19440%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Changing Technologies
The New History
High School Students Taking Courses on History
1889-90 1899-1900
1909-10 1919-20 1929-30 1939-40 1949-500
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
8,000,000
Private Schools
Public Schools
Compression of History in the Schools, 1925
Portion of High School Students in Courses on Subject
1895 1900 1905 1910 1915 1922 1928 1934 19490%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
History
Algebra
English
“Blueprint” for Investigation of History and Other Social Studies, 1928 to 1933
Faculty in History Departments, 1928 to 1948
1928(N=244)
1932(N=296)
1936(N=346)
1940(N=364)
1948(N=416)
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
3 or Less
10 or More
Shift in Alignment of History Departments
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%1928(N=363)
1932(N=462)
1936(N=617)
1940(N=692)
1948(N=786)
Areas of Employment for History PhDs, 1952
4-year College/University79.0%
Other Educational Institu-tion7.1%
Other History-related (government, non-profit)
jobs4.4%
Jobs "closely related" to history5.7%
Jobs Outside History3.8%
History PhDs Conferred, 1873 to 2010
1873-1900
1901-10
1911-20
1921-30
1931-40
1941-50
1951-60
1961-70
1971-80
1981-90
1991-2000
2001-2010
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
8,000
9,000
10,000
Areas of Employment for History PhDs, 1979
2-year College5.6%
4-year College/University73.0%
Elementary/ Secondary School2.9%
Government5.3%
Library/Archives1.1%
Museum/Historical So-ciety1.1%
Private for-Profit Company
4.7%
Private Not-for-Profit Organization
5.2%Other/Not Reported
1.1%
Areas of Employment for History PhDs, 2010
2-year College7.4%
4-year College/University59.6%
Elementary/ Secondary School4.6%
Other Educational Institution1.7%
Private for-Profit Company
5.7%Private Not-for-Profit
Organization5.7%
Research Institute3.8%
State/Local Government2.4%
Self-Employed3.7%
U.S. Government5.3%
For additional questionsplease e-mail me [email protected]
