Dr. Brian Dempsey
Associate Professor of History
Director of the UNA Public History Center
Office: 101 Willingham Hall
Email: bdempsey@una.edu
Phone: 256.765.5069
Personal Website: https://www.brianddempsey.com
Profile
Brian Dempsey is an associate professor of History at the University of North Alabama, and director of the UNA Public History Center. He completed his PhD in Public History at Middle Tennessee State University, and his MA in History at James Madison University. His work focuses on the relationship between landscape and cultural identity, the connections between the arts and historical interpretation, and the process of helping communities tell more complete stories. He recently served as visual curator for the book, Johnny Cash: The Life in Lyrics, and he is currently working on projects exploring the public history of Thomas Jefferson, and music archives in North Alabama.
Education
Ph.D., Middle Tennessee State University (2009)
M.A., James Madison University (2003)
B.A., James Madison University (1999)
Recent Courses Taught
| HI 201/202 | United States History to/since 1877 |
| HI 411/511 | American Material Culture |
| HI 414/514 | The Music Heritage Landscape of the Shoals |
| HI 480/580 | Digital History |
| HI 612 | The Public History of Thomas Jefferson |
| HI 640 | Selected Topics |
| HI 665 | Introduction to Public History |
| HI 667 | Heritage Tourism |
| HI 679 | Public History Internship |
| HI 695 | Graduate Thesis Director |
Selected Publications and Exhibits
ARTICLES
Brian Dempsey and James Startt - “Music of the South and the Natchez Trace,” Peloton Magazine (Move Press: Ojai, California). Feb/Mar (No. 84).
Brian Dempsey: "An Island of Trees Called Old Hickory: History and Place in the Mississippi Delta." Book chapter in the forthcoming University of Massachusetts Press book of essays title, Branching Out: The Public History of Trees. (Pending Publication)
Brian Dempsey, Review of Jennifer Ladino, Memorials Matter: Emotion, Environment, and Public Memory at American Historical Sites. Humanities and Social Sciences Online. February, 2020. https://networks.h-net.org/node/12840/reviews/5931928/dempsey-ladino-memorials-matter-emotion-environment-and-public-memory
Brian Dempsey, Review of Colin Edward Woodward, Country Boy: The Roots of Johnny Cash. University of Arkansas Press. Journal of Southern History. Southern Historical Association
Brian Dempsey, Visual Curator, Johnny Cash: The Life In Lyrics, Voracious Press, November 2023.
PROJECTS
“Hidden Spaces.” Collaborative Photo-Historical Exhibit with Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area and Photographer, Abraham Rowe. Fall 2020. University of North Alabama Art Gallery.
"Civil Rights Struggle in the Shoals" National Park Service Funded Grant Project. Website: https://civilrightsshoals.com/