Eric Sandweiss

Thomas and Kathryn Miller Professor of History, Department of History

Adjunct Professor, Department of Folklore and Ethnomusicology

Department of History

Campus
IU; IU Bloomington

Full Biography

Since retiring from the IU History faculty, I have joined my urban history and museum interests in service to the National Building Arts Center (NBAC), outside of St. Louis. With the nation's largest collection of architectural elements, NBAC will tell the story of the craftspeople, laborers, architects, and artisans who created the fabric of urban America.

I'm additionally interested in how contemporary American political actors are using AI or other search tools to locate and respond to institutionally based online material that includes words like:

diversity inequality structural guilt reparation trans quota woke oppressed equity queer inclusion race sanctuary fascism 1619 ethnic studies rights free speech underrepresented

Honors and Awards

  • Ireland-US Fulbright Teaching Award
  • IU College of Arts and Sciences James P. Holland Award for Exemplary Teaching and Service to Students 
  • UK-Fulbright Distinguished Scholar Award
  • Smithsonian Fellowship in Museum Practice
  • Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts Research Grant
  • National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Stipend
  • Western History Association Joan Patterson Kerr Award for Best Illustrated Book

Research Interests

  • Cultural landscape studies
  • Urban history
  • Architecture
  • Public history and museums
  • Visual culture
  • American popular music
  • Indiana
  • Environmental history

Education

  • A.B., Harvard University, 1981
  • Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, 1991

Courses Taught

  • U.S. History from 1865 to the Present (undergraduate lecture)
  • Hoosier Nation: Indiana in American History (undergraduate lecture)
  • London and the Rise of the Western City (undergraduate travel seminar)
  • Civil Rights in Ireland and the US: 1840-Today (undergraduate travel seminar)
  • History in Public (undergraduate seminar, graduate colloquium)
  • History of Collections and Museums (graduate colloquium)
  • From Pueblos to Strip Malls: A History of the American Landscape (undergraduate seminar)
  • Space and Place in History (graduate colloquium)
  • Cities and History (undergraduate lecture)
  • Modern Presidential Elections: Image and Substance (undergraduate seminar)

Publications

Books

Other Activities