Conor DonnanVisiting Assistant Professor, American Studies

Biography

Conor Joseph Donnan is a Visiting Assistant Professor in American Studies at Franklin & Marshall College. He holds a B.A. in History from Ulster University (Ireland), a Master’s in Historical Studies from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), and both a Master’s and Ph.D. in History from the University of Pennsylvania.

His research and teaching engage with the intersections of anti-colonialism, Indigenous politics, Irish migration, and the American West. His courses invite students to critically examine the dynamics of social change, resistance, and migration, drawing upon a wide range of historical and contemporary sources. He has previously taught at Franklin & Marshall, Georgetown University, Hood College, and UMBC. His scholarship seeks to deepen understanding of how identities and movements are shaped within transnational contexts.

Education

Ph.D.      The University of Pennsylvania, History, 2022.

M.A.        The University of Baltimore County, Historical Studies, 2016.

B.A.         Ulster University, History and American Studies, 2014.

Publications

Books

Entwined by Empire: Native Americans, Irish Nationalists, and the Politics of Anti-Colonial Solidarity (Johns Hopkins Press, forthcoming)

Articles

“No Irish Need Apply”: Discriminatory Employment Practices in Baltimore, 1840–1870, New Hibernia Review 27:1 (2023)

“Kindred Spirits and Sacred Bonds: Irish Catholics, Native Americans, and the Battle Against Anglo-Protestant Imperialism,” U.S. Catholic Historian 38:3 (2020)

Public Humanities

 Historical Consultant and Interviewee, An Arrow Through Time – A documentary by WideAwake Media about Irish and Native American solidarity from 1840 to the present (2026).

 Historical Consultant and Interviewee, Making Tracks - Documentary, LifeFM, Ireland (2015).

 Grants & Awards

Huntington Library Fellowship (2022)

Irish-U.S. Fellowship, Washington Irish Program (2021)

Presidential Grant, American Catholic Historical Association (2020)

Research Grant, CSERI, University of Pennsylvania (2019)

Hibernian Research Award, University of Notre Dame (2019)

Humanities Fellowship, University of Pennsylvania (2018–2019)

Lord Baltimore Fellowship, Maryland Historical Society (2015–2016)