Historic Rock Ford's America250 Lecture Series welcomes author Karin Wulf as she presents “Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection." This lecture is based upon her book of the same name and explores how genealogy was a powerful force in 18th-century America, shaping society, law, and identity for all people, not just elites. The book argues that family records, created in diverse forms from documents to artifacts, were crucial for individuals and institutions to claim status, define freedom (especially in relation to slavery), and navigate legal and social structures, connecting personal emotion with political power. Wulf shows how genealogy was a universal practice, used by everyone from enslaved people seeking freedom to founding fathers seeking status, making it central to understanding the American past.
This presentation will be held in the Langmuir Education Room located on the first floor of the Rock Ford Barn. Please note that admission is for the lecture only and does not include the Snyder Gallery.
About the presenter: Karin Wulf is the Director and Librarian of the John Carter Brown Library and Professor of History at Brown University. A historian of early America focused on gender, family, and politics, she writes widely for both public and academic audiences about history, the worlds of research and scholarship, and libraries and archives. Her new book is “Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in Early America.” She serves on a variety of non-profit boards, is involved in planning for the semiquincentennial in July 2026, and is a Vice-President of the American Historical Association.
$10 General Admission
$5 Rock Ford Member