“Davidson and Dispossession: The Dismantling of the Catawba Reservation, the Establishment of Davidson College, and the Importance of ‘Hard History’”
Rose Stremlau, Ph.D., Charles A. Dana Associate Professor of History/Gender & Sexuality Studies, Davidson College

In this lecture, Stremlau connects the stories of settler economic development, including land speculation and enslavement; marriage and family formation; institution building; and historical memory in the Catawba River Valley region. Stremlau will discuss early findings and the design of this multi-year project that integrates two processes that, until now, have been disconnected in historical narratives. Drawing evidence from a range of primary sources and informed by genealogical methods, Stremlau and students at Davidson College are learning how the founding families generated the financial means to establish the college through speculation in Catawba land and investment in plantations, including enslaved people, and the domestic slave trade.

Presented in person and virtually. To attend via Zoom, register via this link: https://bit.ly/42osaun