Research

This page highlights student research into the history of enslavement, dispossession, segregation, and other forms of racial injustice and inequality at the University of Delaware, its precursor institutions, and surrounding communities. Each post summarizes key findings from an individual student’s research, though these projects were produced as part of a collaborative effort, organized in UD seminars, and in partnership with libraries, archives, and researchers both on and off-campus.

Scholar in the Library Presentation HIST – 460/660 (Fall 2021)

A Zoom window of students and teachers gathered in a meeting. At the top, words read "HIST 460/660 Race and Inequality in Delaware"

Scholar in the Library “Delaware College and Newark in the Era of Slavery, Indentured Labor, and Abolition” December 7, 2021 Using materials from Special Collections and University Archives, students in the Fall 2021 seminar “Race and Inequality in Delaware” investigated the history of the University of Delaware in the age of enslavement and emancipation. Join…… Continue Reading Scholar in the Library Presentation HIST – 460/660 (Fall 2021)…

Slavery, Scholarships, and the Survival of Delaware College

How did enslavers prevent the school’s proposed dissolution? By: Ryan Bachman | Posted: 3-26-2024 American colleges and universities faced the ever-present threat of closure in the nineteenth century. Inconsistent state support, economic depressions, and war meant that a given school could shut down at any time. Sometimes, wealth from slavery was all that kept an…… Continue Reading Slavery, Scholarships, and the Survival of Delaware College…