Articles by author: mvanatte

  • Ali Macdonald joins Department as postdoctoral fellow

    The History Department is delighted to welcome new Social Science and Humanities Research Council postdoctoral fellow Alexandra (Ali) Macdonald. She comes to us from the College of William and Mary (Williamsburg, Virginia), where she recently completed her Ph.D.

    Dr. Macdonald’s research focuses on material culture in the British Atlantic world in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Her scholarly interests, which draw on her background in both history and art history, include using period-specific methods and ingredients (such as original dyes and pigments) to recreate historical crafts. She has received various fellowships to support her work, including a recent postdoctoral fellowship at Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library (Winterthur, Delaware) where she worked with conservationists to recreate indigo vats and analyse embroidery made in Connecticut in the eighteenth century.

    During her two-year postdoc at Brock (January 2025 to December 2026), Dr. Macdonald will work with Dr. Jessica Clark on a project that draws on multiple research methods – the history of the senses, material culture studies, and the history of labour and the body – to examine the complex and often fraught history of indigo and other dyestuffs in the eighteenth and nineteenth century British world. The project is entitled “Imperial Sensorium: Bodies, Industrialization, and the Dye Industry, 1750-1850.”

    Categories: News

  • Gary Gardell shares lacrosse history at local museum

    History MA student Gary Gardell will speak on lacrosse in St. Catharines from the 1870s to the 1920s.  

    All are welcome.

    Categories: Events

  • Andrew McDonald puts his stamp on stamps

    The Isle of Man Post Office recently announced a new series of stamps, The Age of the Sea Kings, created in collaboration with Brock History professor Andrew McDonald and Manx artist Juan Moore. 

    Read the full story: Stamp of approval: Research delivers medieval sea king history to the world – The Brock News

    Categories: News

  • Behnaz Mirzai weighs in on International Women’s Day

    Brock History professor Behnaz Mirzai spoke as part of a panel on International Women’s Day.

    Read the full story: International Women’s Day: Brock researchers aim to inspire the next generation – The Brock News

    Categories: News

  • Behnaz Mirzai’s new book explores slavery in the Middle East

    Read the full story: Newly translated text unearths history of slavery in the Middle East – The Brock News

    Categories: News

  • Colin Rose illuminates how new popes are chosen

    Read the full story: OPINION: Colin Rose discusses the papal conclave’s history – The Brock News

    Categories: News

  • History Department celebrates student achievements for 2024-25

    On April 8, 2025, the History Department celebrated our students’ successes throughout the 2024-25 academic year. 

    An enthusiastic crowd of family and friends gathered at the St. Catharines Public Library for the official launch of the tenth volume of The General, Brock’s undergraduate History journal. 

    The audience heard riveting presentations from student co-editors Alessia Priolo and Jarred Polege and the authors of the nine essays published in the volume, which highlighted the range and quality of Brock History students’ work.

    The General showcases outstanding student research, offers a half-credit of History coursework for its two co-editors, and brings many other students into the publication process as volunteer peer reviewers. It also hosts a competition for cover art.

    Volume 10 can be found here.

    We also celebrated our students with the presentation of several merit-based monetary awards. The recipients are exceptional students who have displayed the dedication, hard work, skill, and talent needed to succeed in Humanities education, and the History Department is thrilled to recognize the fruits of their labour.

    The award winners are:

    Donald Goodspeed Book Prize
    Awarded to a History student who has made a significant contribution to the History Department
    Sarah Skolud

    John and Barbara McEwen Prize in British History
    Awarded to a student who excels in British History at the second-, third-, or fourth-year level
    Nikola Dixon

    Lillie A. Traver Scholarship
    Awarded to a student with honours standing, majoring in History
    Braeden Moore

    Frank and Amy Wills Memorial Award
    Awarded to a History student who has demonstrated superior creativity and thoroughness in research presented in the History
    Alessia Cotic

    Department of History First Year Book Prize
    Awarded to an outstanding History student in first year
    Ben Spittal

    Department of History Second Year Book Prize
    Awarded to an outstanding History student in second year
    Thomas Tselepakis

    Department of History Third Year Book Prize
    Awarded to an outstanding History student in third year
    Evan (Vanja) Hamister

    Categories: News

  • Lauren Berry wins Jack M. Miller Excellence in Research Award

    The History Department is delighted to announce that History MA student Lauren Berry was one of ten graduate students from across six Brock Faculties and Colleges to receive the Jack M. Miller Excellence in Research Award.

    The awards were presented at the 20th annual Mapping New Knowledges (MNK) Research Conference, held at Brock on April 9, 2025.

    Lauren’s research focuses on the moral panic about stage actresses that swept Britain in the eighteenth century.

    Congratulations, Lauren, on this well-deserved honour!

    History MA student Lauren Berry (5th from right) accepts her Excellence in Research Award, April 2025 

    Read the full story: Recognizing grad student research with reach – The Brock News 

    Categories: News

  • Andrew McDonald contributes Sea Kings scholarship for stamp series

    Brock History professor Andrew McDonalds collaborates in creating a series of Isle of Man stamps commemorating the fascinating world of the medieval Sea Kings.

    Read the full story: The Age of the Sea Kings – Isle of Man Post Office

    Categories: News

  • Kimberly Monk highlights maritime heritage at local fair

    St. Catharines Standard, March 3, 2025Fonthill was the epicentre of where geology and culture met in Niagara for the inaugural “You SeeEm Museum” event, held Sunday at Meridian Community Centre. 

    “From a family perspective, it’s to raise awareness of the cultural heritage we have in Niagara and to see things that are tangible,” said event organizer Darren Platakis, founder of Niagara Geo Park and co-leader of Niagara Geo Club.

    Platakis celebrated it as an “intersection of where geology and culture come together,” highlighting Niagara’s history.

    “Many vendors or participants, they’re showing archeological artifacts that have been found, the geo park is showing the geology of the area and for the visitors coming around … we’re putting that story together for them,” he said.

    “Niagara as an area is culturally significant, not just for the 200 years (since) the War of 1812, but for the 12,000 years previous to that, when we had the first Indigenous communities living here.”

    Platakis said events like this are important for many reasons as they tell the story of the region, both through evidence and shared oral histories.

    “They’re about the stories, everyone who lives in the geo park has a story of alocation they might have gone to,” he said. “Those stories and locations, over time, disappear and I’m hopeful events such as this bring those stories to the forefront.”

    Maritime history and Niagara’s connection to it were highlighted during Sunday’s event.

    The Point Abino Lighthouse Preservation Society, a volunteer group, offered its perspective of Niagara’s maritime history.

    Society president Alf Goodearle praised “You See ’Em Museum.” “This is a tremendous opportunity, tucked away in the corner of the Niagara region. The lighthouse gets limited exposure,” he said. “We’re using this event to sell our society on trying to recruit some new volunteers.”

    Goodearle said to preserve the region’s heritage, the organization relies on donations and volunteers.

    Kimberly Monk, adjunct professor at Brock University and director of the Shickluna Shipyard project, said connecting with the public on local maritime history is rewarding.

    “As archeologists, historians, members of the museum community, we are all very aware, clearly, of our past, but many others not in professional fields … may not be,” she said.

    “We want to connect the public with the importance and significance of our histories to engage on why this work is so important and why it deserves to be recognized.” The importance of Niagara’s history cannot be overestimated, Monk said. “We hope the municipalities and the region appreciate that, as we look toward celebrating the Welland Canal’s bicentennial and supporting, of course, historical and archeological programs and projects relating to that history.”

    Monk said a rare aspect of the project unearthing the St. Catharines shipbuilder’s story is talking about local maritime history. Many marine sites no longer exist or“ they are obscured from the public because they are submerged.”

    “The opportunity to share in our maritime past, a past that had everything to do with the settlement, with economic development of the Niagara region, is so crucial to appreciating those who came before us,” she said.

    The event, originally slated for Family Day weekend, had to be rescheduled due to inclement weather.

    Categories: News