ERIC FONER

Eric Foner is a prominent American historian who was born and raised in New York City. He studied at Columbia University, the University of Oxford, and Oriel College and returned to Columbia for his PhD. Foner was the DeWitt Clinton Professor Emeritus of History at Columbia, specializing in the Civil War and Reconstruction, slavery, and 19th-century America. He is one of only two persons to serve as President of the Organization of American Historians, American Historical Association, and Society of American Historians. He has also been the curator of several museum exhibitions, including the prize-winning "A House Divided: America in the Age of Lincoln," at the Chicago Historical Society. His book, The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery won the Pulitzer, Bancroft, and Lincoln prizes for 2011. His latest book is Gateway to Freedom: The Hidden History of the Underground Railroad. According to the Open Syllabus Project, Foner is the most frequently cited author on college syllabi for history courses.

“History, it has been said, is what the present chooses to remember about the past.” Eric Foner