Global Early America before 1700

Convened by Alison Games, Georgetown University

January 30-31, 2026

Huntington Library, San Marino California

Was there a global early America? Atlantic approaches to early America have become commonplace, as have perspectives rooted in ideas about “vast” early America, yet little scholarship has sought to situate early America in a global context. Is such a context useful? What might it illuminate about the history of early America before 1700? This WMQ-EMSI Workshop invites scholars in history and related disciplines to explore these questions from a diverse array of methodological and geographic perspectives. Participants are urged to think about what global contexts might entail as broadly and creatively as possible, considering connections, comparisons, and convergences as well as shared processes or experiences.

Participants will attend a two-day meeting at the Huntington Library (January 30-31, 2026) to discuss a pre-circulated, unpublished chapter-length portion of their current work in progress along with the work of other participants. Subsequently, the convener, Alison Games, will write an essay elaborating on the issues raised at the workshop for publication in the William and Mary Quarterly. The participants’ meals, lodging, and travel expenses will be covered by the USC-Huntington Early Modern Studies Institute (EMSI) and the Omohundro Institute.

Proposals for workshop presentations should include a two-page c.v. and two brief abstracts (250 words each): the first describing the article or chapter draft the applicant seeks to present at the workshop, and the second discussing the scope of the applicant’s larger research project. The organizers especially encourage proposals from mid-career scholars who are working on their second (or subsequent) major project. Graduate students are ineligible.

Deadline: September 15, 2025

APPLY HERE