Dr. Jim Downs
@jimdowns1
Author of Maladies of Empire & Sick from Freedom; GilderLehrman NEH Prof at Gettysburg Coll; Editor of Civil War History; History Studio; Director of PAAH @ LCP
When I began researching history of epidemiology 10 years ago, I couldn’t imagine I would finish during a pandemic.I uncovered how epidemiology began w/ doctors studying enslaved & colonized populations, soldiers & Muslim migrants.Thrilled to announce it’s available for pre-order
I was shocked and saddened to learn earlier this week that GBH, a pioneering producer of public media in the U.S., has paused American Experience, the longest-running and most-watched historical documentary series on American television, and laid off its staff and leadership.
I haven't been here in MONTHS. I'm back to let folks know about this: Coming up next week! Sign-up info at the link. The great historian Frank Cogliano and I are co-teaching a three week course on Hamilton & Jefferson. You KNOW you want to be there. roundtable.org/live-courses/h…
Be sure and take advantage of this . . .🙄
#CDC reports the confirmed #measles count in the country so far this year has hit 1,288, the highest single year total since 1992 — and the highest since measles was declared eliminated in the US in 2000. statnews.com/2025/07/09/mea…
1/ A small drop⬇️ in vaccination rates—from 95% to 92.7%—might not seem significant, but for measles, it's critical. This decline increases the risk of the disease becoming endemic again in the US. on @CBSNews with @errolbarnett cbsnews.com/video/us-measl…
An absorbing article by @salamishah,which features @ericaadunbar brilliant work as a historical consultant who is also my colleague at @HistoryStudioLA.Erica has the inimitable talent to take a corpus of scholarship and translate it into legible storyline. nytimes.com/2025/07/09/art…
From the port of Aden in the year 1150 to the streets of Phnom Penh in 2023--my take on the global history of capitalism is finally ready to go into print. This fall at a bookstore near you. penguinrandomhouse.com/books/541160/c…
Thea was born on July 4. I think about her almost every day. I still deeply miss our friendship, her beautiful mind, and her uproarious laughter. theatlantic.com/education/arch…
SCOTUS ruled parents can remove their children from class when gay is mentioned. Yesterday, Andrew Sullivan wrote a historically inaccurate NYT OpEd about gay radicalism that justified his transphobia. Unsure if it’s worth responding, esp to Sullivan, who misrepresents the past.
I attended this event last night! It was well worth the quick turnaround trip from DC to Philadelphia!
I’m thrilled to organize this event at the Library Company of Philadelphia for Juneteenth. Please consider attending. Registration is free and open to the public. support.librarycompany.org/event/juneteen…
The general public is so scientifically illiterate that most of you don’t even know how bad it is going to get and in a very short amount of time. But also how irreversible a lot of this is. We will never recover as a country from the loss of our most brilliant minds, of…
We can name the bacteria in a patient’s blood in 2 hours (something that used to take days). But it still takes 3+ days to move patients from the hospital to a post-acute facility bc of paperwork. This is a systemic problem resulting in unsafe boarding conditions in ERs across…