Isaac Lee

Biography

My research centers on the histories of race, colonialism, slavery, and labor in the English-speaking Atlantic world, with an emphasis on the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. More broadly, I am interested in the question of how early Americans constructed “public goods” and the transforming effects this work had on social relationships. Reciprocally, I am also interested in how everyday people understood the historical changes occurring around them and how those experiences informed ideas of the “public good” and social belonging.

My current focus is on colonial-era public labor what this under-examined form of work can reveal about the role of marginalized peoples in building and maintaining early America. My Masters thesis explored this topic through an analysis of the historical development of public road infrastructure in colonial Boston. My findings, especially the distinct roles of minor local officials and free men of African descent reveal an important relationship between ideas of race and social obligation among early Bostonians.

Education

M.A., History, University of Wisconsin-Madison
B.A., w/ Honors in Major, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Field

• U.S./North American History

MA Title

• Making “Sufficient Wayes”: Working on the Streets of Colonial Boston

Selected Awards

• Department of History, Early Excellence TA Award, 2020-2010

Courses Taught as TA

• History 101, American History to the Civil War Era, Dr. Justine Walden, Fall 2020
• History 102, American History from the Civil War to the Present, Professor Allison Powers-Usche, Spring 2021