Omohundro Institute of Early American History & Culture

Leading Early American Scholarship Since 1943

Doing History

The “Doing History” podcast series are about early American history and how historians work. Each series utilizes the OI’s community of early Americanist scholars to discuss issues surrounding the production of scholarship. Each series is a collaboration with Ben Franklin’s World: A Podcast About Early American History.

Doing History Session 1 Doing History Session 1

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Episode 105: Joshua Piker, How Historians Work

What do historians do with their research once they finish writing about it?

How do historians publish the books and articles we love to read?

This episode of our “Doing History: How Historians Work” series, takes us behind-the-scenes of how historians publish their writing about history.

Our guide through the world of history publications is Joshua Piker, a Professor of History at the College of William and Mary, and the Editor of the William & Mary Quarterly, the leading journal of early American history and culture.

Episodes and supplemental content available on

Supporting this series helps to meet one of the chief aims of the Lapidus Initiative: to make more transparent the intensive and collaborative processes of developing and producing high-quality scholarship. It also offers us a new and exciting opportunity for public outreach.