Leadership and Legacy: Conversations at the George Washington Presidential Library

Dr. Michael Klarman is the Kirkland and Ellis Professor at Harvard Law School and received his Ph.D. in legal history from the University of Oxford, where he was a Marshall Scholar. Dr. Klarman is the author of numerous books on constitutional law and history. In this episode he discusses his book The Framers’ Coup: Building a United States, which was one of seven finalists for the 2017 George Washington Prize. Dr. Klarman spoke at a Ford Evening Book Talk on April 11, 2017.

George Goodwin is Honorary Author in Residence at Benjamin Franklin House in London, the world's only remaining Franklin home. He is also a Fellow at the Royal Historical Society, the Chartered Institute of Marketing, and the Royal Society of Arts. In this episode he discusses his book "Benjamin Franklin in London: The British Life of America's Founding Father." Mr. Goodwin spoke at the 2017 Michelle Smith Lecture series on March 30, 2017.

Dr. Erica Armstrong Dunbar is the Blue and Gold Distinguished Professor of Black American Studies at the University of Delaware where her teaching focuses on slavery, racial injustice, and gender equality. In 2011 she was named the Inaugural Director of the Program in African American History at the Library, and her book, A Fragile Freedom: African American Women and Emancipation in the Antebellum City, was the first to chronicle the lives of African American women in the urban north during the early republic. In this episode she discusses her newest book Never Caught: The Washingtons’ Relentless Pursuit of their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge.

Mr. John Steele Gordon is an independent author and historian who specializes in business and financial history. He has written numerous books on America's financial history, including "The Scarlet Woman of Wall Street: A History of Wall Street in the 1860s" and "Hamilton's Blessing: The Extraordinary Life and Times of our National Debt." In this episode he discusses his latest work "Washington's Monument: And the Fascinating History of the Obelisk." Mr. Gordon spoke at a Ford Evening Book Talk at Mount Vernon on March 1, 2017.

Dr. Zara Anishanslin is Assistant Professor of History and Art History at the University of Delaware who specializes in Early American and Atlantic world history with a focus on eighteenth century material culture. She was the Patrick Henry Postdoctoral Fellow in the history department at Johns Hopkins University and a Mellon Fellow at CUNY's Graduate Center. In this episode she discusses her first book "Portrait of a Woman in Silk: Hidden Histories of the British Atlantic World."

John Avlon is is Editor-in-Chief and Managing Director of the Daily Beast and is a CNN political analyst. His book "Wingnuts: How the Lunatic Fringe is Hijacking America" was praised by President Bill Clinton as providing a "clear and comprehensive review of the forces on the outer edges of the political spectrum that shape and distort our political debate." Mr. Avlon discussed his newest book "Washington's Farewell: The Founding Father's Warning to Future Generations" at a Ford Evening Book Talk on February 1, 2017.

Dr. Kathleen DuVal is the Bowman and Gordon Gray Professor of History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her research focuses on early America, particularly cross-cultural relations on North American borderlands. She explores how Native American, European, and African men and women interacted in the sixteenth through nineteenth centuries. She discusses her latest book, "Independence Lost: Lives on the Edge of the American Revolution," which won the Book of the Year Award from the Journal of the American Revolution and was a finalist for the 2016 George Washington Book Prize.

Laurie Halse Anderson is a New York Times bestselling author. Her first historical fiction novel, "Fever 1793," received multiple awards and is used in curriculums in classrooms around the nation. "Chains," the first book of her trilogy set during the Revolutionary War, was a National Book Award finalist, received the Scot O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction, and received the ALA Best Book for Young Adults award. She discusses the challenges of teaching history and slavery in a meaningful way through fiction. Laurie spoke at Mount Vernon's Educators' Evening on December 7, 2016.

Dr. Lydia Brandt is Assistant Professor of Art History at the University of South Carolina, where she teaches the history of American art and architecture as well as methods of historic preservation. She was a member of the inaugural class of fellows at the Washington Library; the work she did during that time led to the publication of her first book, "First in the Homes of His Countrymen: George Washington's Mount Vernon in the American Imagination," in 2016. She discusses how replicas and imitations of Washington's estate have risen in popularity throughout history and how the home became and American Icon. Dr. Brandt spoke at a Ford Evening Book Talk on December 7, 2016.

Dr. David Hildebrand is a specialist in early American music, teaches American music history at the Peabody Conservatory, and is an author for the Johns Hopkins University Press. He regularly performs at museums, universities, and historical societies in duet with his wife, Ginger. He discusses how he came to study early American music and the political power of song during the Revolutionary period. His CD, "Music for the First President," is available for purchase from the Shops at Mount Vernon at shops.mountvernon.org. Dr. Hildebrand was a member of the 2016-17 class of fellows at the Washington Library.