Craig Thompson Friend
Associate Professor and Director of Public History
B.A.: Wake Forest University
M.A.: Clemson University
Ph.D.: University of Kentucky
368 Withers Hall
Phone: 919 513-2227
Email: ctfriend@ncsu.edu
FALL 09 OFFICE HOURS
M 3:00-5:00 pm, W 1:00-3:00 pm, or by appointment
Research Interests
Professor Friend is fascinated by social and cultural development. He is particularly intrigued with the formation of "American" culture during the Early American Republic. His first monograph, Along the Maysville Road: The Early Republic in the Trans-Appalachian West explores how republicanism, democracy, urban development, refinement, an awakening middle class, revivalism, racial slavery, and nationalism transformed life along one of the early West's most important thoroughfares. In his forthcoming book, Kentucke 's Frontiers, Friend examines how the Native American hunting grounds of Kentucke were transformed first into a New West frontier of the post-Revolutionary War era and then into an Old South frontier after the turn of the nineteenth century. His newest project, Dying in the Early Republic: The Evolution of an American Way of Death, will examine the cultural development of mourning, afterlife beliefs, and the business of death and dying in the nation's formative years. He has also edited several anthologies: The Buzzel About Kentuck: Settling the Promised Land and Southern Manhood: Perspectives on Masculinity in the Old South with Lorri Glover; and has two forthcoming anthologies: Southern Masculinity: Perspectives on Manhood in the South since Reconstruction and Family Values in the Old South with Anya Jabour.
Teaching Interests
Professor Friend taught at Georgetown College in central Kentucky and at the University of Central Florida before joining the NC State faculty in 2005. As the Director of Public History, he teaches the Introduction to Public History as well as newly developed courses in Local & Community History and Heritage Development. He also teaches the Early American Republic and Early American Frontiers, courses emanating from his scholarly interests.
Public History
It was during his doctoral work that Professor Friend first became involved in Public History. His first project was a cultural resources survey for the Cherokee National Forest; he spent months cataloguing, documenting, and mapping historic and archaeological sites in the mountains of Tennessee. He has since done cultural and historic resource surveys for the Fort Necessity/National Road National Historic Site in Pennsylvania, explored documentary editing at the National Historical Publications and Records Commission's Institute for the Editing of Historical Documents in Wisconsin, and worked on the Cultural By-ways on the Information Highway project in Orlando, Florida. As Director of Public History, Professor Friend is developing a broader curricular program and exciting projects for future students as they explore the possibilities of employment in history outside the academy.
SHEAR Conference Coordinator
Professor Friend serves as the national conference coordinator for the Society for Historians of the Early American Republic. Conference information may be found at the SHEAR website.
public history blog:
http://ncpublichistory.blogspot.com
personal blog:
http://craigthompsonfriend.blogspot.com
Raleigh history blog:
http://raleighcityofoaks.blogspot.com
