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Home: Our Faculty: Brooklyn College Faculty:

Edwin Burrows

Professor   Department: History   Location: 503s Whitehead Hall   Phone: 718-951-5000 x2808   Fax: 718-951-4504   Email:   Edwin Burrows's Web site

A native of Ann Arbor, I received my B.A. in History from the University of Michigan in 1964, then came to New York to do graduate work at Columbia University with Richard Hofstadter and Eric McKitrick. I completed my Ph.D. in 1973, soon after joining the faculty of Brooklyn College. Currently, I've just finished a book about the 30,000 Americans taken prisoner by the British during the Revolutionary War. The vast majority were detained in and around New York City under conditions of almost unimaginable squalor. Sixty percent of them died of malnutrition, disease, or physical abuse -- almost three times as many as died in combat. Their stories offer a wealth of detail about how ordinary people experienced the Revolution. They also provide revealing insights into how the Revolution would be remembered in years to come. The book's title is "Forgotten Patriots: The Untold Story of American Prisoners in the Revolutionary War" (Basic Books). Education: DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - 1973 (HISTORY) Areas of Expertise: The History of New York City; 18th century America; the American Revolution Books and Publications Contributed a chapter, "The Gibraltar of America," to the book "New York 400" (Museum of the City of New York, 2009). (Books and Publications: Chapter) 2009 Published "Forgotten Patriots: The Untold Story of American Prisoners during the Revolutionary War" (Basic Books). Spoke about the book at over two dozen venues, including the National Archives and the Lehman Center at Columbia University. (Books and Publications: Book) 2008 Sabbatical leave to complete "Forgotten Patriots: American Prisoners in the Revolutionary War" (Basic Books, October 2008). (Books and Publications: Forthcoming Publications) 2008 Continued research and writing on "The Prisoners of New York" (Basic Books), the first full-length study of American prisoners of war in British-occupied New York City. (Books and Publications: Forthcoming Publications) 2006 "New York City,"The Encyclopedia of New York State, ed. Peter S. Eisenstadt (Syracuse, 2005), 1062-1077 [lead article]. (Books and Publications: Other Article) 2005 "The Cornell Letters," American in Britain, 43 (2005) (Books and Publications: Other Article) 2005 "The Ordeal of Kings County," in Joseph S. Tiedemann and Eugene R. Fingerhut (eds.) The Other New York: The American Revolution Beyond New York City (2005), 1062-1077 (Books and Publications: Chapter) 2005 Awards, Honors and Fellowships NEH Summer Stipend for "The Prisoners of New York." (Grants and Fellowships) 2007 Recipient of the Presidential Medal, Hofstra University. (Awards and Honors) 2001 Elected a Fellow of the Society of American Historians. (Awards and Honors) 2000 Recipient of the Washington Irving Medal, St. Nicholas Society. (Awards and Honors) 2000 "Gotham" named "Best Book of the Year" by the New York Society Library. (Awards and Honors) 1999 Named "Centennial Historian of New York" by Mayor Rudolph Giulani. (Awards and Honors) 1999 Pulitzer Prize in History for "Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898" (Oxford). (Awards and Honors) 1999 Recipient of the Brendan Gill prize, Municipal Arts Society. (Awards and Honors) 1999 Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums "The Prisoners of New York," a paper delivered to the 27th Annual Conference on New York History, June 1, 2006. (Conferences, Seminars and Symposiums: Conference Presentation) 2006 Professional Leadership named to editorial board of New York History (Professional Leadership: Organizational Leadership Position) 2009 Continued service on the Board of Directors of the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum. (Professional Leadership: Organizational Leadership Position) 2006 Named to the Board of Directors of the New York Academy of History, created by Kenneth Jackson (Columbia University) in 2006 to further research and writing in the history of New York. (Professional Leadership: Organizational Leadership Position) 2006 Other Professional Activities Consultant and on-camera commentator for "Walt Whitman," a new PBS documentary on the life of the poet. 2007 As a Distinguished Lecturer for the Organization of American Historians, spoke to public audiences in Connecticut and New Jersey. 2006 Consultant and on-camera narrator for "The Sugar Connection," a documentary film about the manors of colonial Long Island and global trade in the 17th century. Produced by the Suffolk County Archaeological Association. 2006 Named to the Distinguished Lecturship Series, Organization of American Historians. 2002