Call for Papers
The Shattuck Colonial American History Symposium
California State University, Sacramento
March 18-20, 2026
2026 is the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. In recognition of this milestone, the Shattuck Colonial American History Symposium will take place on the campus of California State University, Sacramento from March 18-20, 2026. Hosted by the Department of History at Sac State and the Peter H. Shattuck Endowment, the aim of the conference is to encourage reflection, discourse, and critical thinking about the past by bringing together historians, scholars, and students in meaningful discussions.
We welcome papers and panels that examine early American history from 1607 to 1826. Like the previous symposium, the theme is Becoming Americans.
Please submit your paper or panel proposals to Mrs. Vicenza Weeks, the Shattuck Endowment Coordinator, at moscariello@csus.edu by Friday, January 16, 2026. Include “The Shattuck Colonial American History Symposium” in the subject line. Submissions should include:
•The title of the paper or panel.
•An abstract of no more than 500 words.
•Contact information and affiliation for each presenter.
Participants will be notified of acceptance by Monday, February 16 at the latest.
We are pleased to announce that our keynote speaker will be Dr. Carter L. Hudgins, Professor Emeritus, Clemson University. Dr. Hudgins’s research examines historic preservation, vernacular architecture in early America, and the early modern material culture of the Atlantic rim.
We are also pleased to announce that the organizers of the Freedom Seekers database project (https://freedom-seekers.org) will be leading a panel about how digital humanities can reveal new stories about the Black experience in early America.
For more information, please contact Dr. Antonio T. Bly, the symposium organizer and the Peter H. Shattuck Endowed Chair in Colonial American History at antonio.bly@csus.edu.
“The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.” L.P. Hartley.