Robinson Professors

Spencer Crew

Spencer Crew has worked in public history institutions for more than twenty-five years.  He served as president of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center for six years and worked at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution for twenty years.  Nine of those years he served as the director of NMAH.  At each of those institutions he sought to make history accessible to the public through innovative and inclusive exhibitions and public programs. 

His most important exhibition was the ground breaking “Field to Factory: Afro-American Migration 1915 – 1940” which generated a national discussion about migration, race, and creating historical exhibitions.    He also co-curated “The American Presidency A Glorious Burden” which is one of the Smithsonian’s most popular exhibitions. The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center has attracted worldwide attention because of the quality of its presentations and focus on race, interracial cooperation, and issues of contemporary slavery.

Crew has published extensively in the areas of African American and Public History.  Among his publications are Field to Factory: Afro-American Migration 1915 - 1940 (1987), and Black Life in Secondary Cities: A Comparative Analysis of the Black Communities of Camden and Elizabeth, N.J. 1860 - 1920 (1993). He co-authored The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden (2002) and Unchained Memories: Readings From The Slave Narratives (2002).

Crew is an active member of the academic and cultural communities, serving on many boards that work to generate enthusiasm for history among the general public. He is the Past Chair of the National Council for History Education and serves on the Board of the National Trust for Historic Preservation as well as the Nominating Board of the Organization of American Historians.

He graduated from Brown University and holds a master's degree and a doctorate from Rutgers University. In 2003 he was inducted into the Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni.

Fall Courses 2009

HIST 300: Introduction to Historical Methods - Underground Railroad and Abolition

The course will introduce students to the theory and practice od history. It will use the Underground Railroad as the vehicle for teaching skills in historical thinking, research, and writing. The Underground Railroad was a loose secret network of individuals dedicated to undermining the institution of slavery and gaiing freedom for African Americans enslaved by the institution. Studying it will provide an opportunity for using historical skills and methodology to separate myth from truth in the process writing a research paper. (W 1:30-4:15 p.m.)

HIST 691: The Museum: Myths and Realities

This course introduces the history graduate student to the theory and practice of museums in America. We begin with a history of museums, with readings that help students define what roles museums have played and presently play in American life and culture. We will study the function of art and history museums, and will investigate how research, collections, education, and community outreach contribute to the vitality of a modern museum. We also will examine the challenges currently faced by museums in a dramatically changing environment. In addition to readings, short papers, and visits to museums, students will be expected to produce an exhibition proposal and an online interactive exhibition on a topic of their choosing. (W 7:20-10:00pm)

Spring Courses 2010

HIST 122: History of Modern America

This course will examine the events and the individuals tat shaped the development of the United States from 1876 to the present. This is a time of tremendous change for the nation as it becomes a world power, experiences the immigration of millions of new people, undergoes a tremendous growth of its cities, is shaken by the dropping of the atomic bomb and the start of the cold war, copes with civil rights and anti-war activists, and elects its first African American president. How the nation reacts to and adjusts to these many changes will drive the course. It will use film, first hand narratives, primary documents, newspaper articles, and oral histories to provide a sense of the thoughts and the concerns of individuals at the time of the events under examination. The course also will examine how these past events have impacted and shaped our present day world. (TR 10:30-11:45 a.m.)

HIST 499: Slavery, Abolition and the Underground Railroad

Slavery and its abolition was one of the major issues in the United States leading up to the Civil War. Southerners saw slavery as a positive good for themselves and for the enslaved people they controlled. Abolitionists saw slavery as a blemish on the nation and were committed to bring it to an end. The participants of the Underground Railroad took direct action to undermine slavery by aiding enslaved people seeking freedom escape and start new lives. Reading the ideas and stories of the individuals who were a part of this interracial activist movement, investigating how the underground railroad worked on a day-to-day basis, and examining how historians have assessed this movement will provide the foundation for research class participants will do on the underground railroad and abolition. The Underground Railroad was a complex operation which over the years has had many myths connected to it. Sorting the myth from reality will enable students to better understand how historians assess research material and craft a thesis for their work. They will then apply these insights to the writing of their own research paper for the class. (R 4:30-7:10pm)