Olsen, Christopher J. 1966-

(Christopher John Olsen)

PERSONAL: Born March 19, 1966, in Fargo, ND; son of Richard Donald and Verna Jean Catherine Olsen; married Jennifer Ann Ross, March 18, 1995; children: Emma Catherine, Charlotte Ann, Ross Christopher.

Education: North Dakota State University, B.A., 1988; University of Nebraska, M.A., 1990; University of Florida, Ph.D., 1996. Hobbies and other interests: Golf.

ADDRESSES: Home— Terre Haute, IN. E-mail— [email protected]; [email protected].

CAREER: Historian, educator, and writer. University of Florida, Gainesville, adjunct professor, 1995-96; Virginia Wesleyan College, Norfolk, assistant professor, 1996-99; Indiana State University, Terre Haute, assistant professor of history, 1999-2002, associate professor of history, 2002—.

MEMBER: Organization of American Historians, Southern Historical Association, Society for Historians of the Early American Republic, Indiana Historical Society, South Dakota Historical Society, Phi Alpha Theta, Phi Beta Kappa.

AWARDS, HONORS: Graduate Council doctoral fellowship, University of Florida, 1990-91; Samuel Proctor Graduate Teaching Award, History Department, University of Florida, 1992-93; recipient of numerous grants.

WRITINGS

Political Culture and Secession in Mississippi: Masculinity, Honor, and the Antiparty Tradition, 1830-1860, Oxford University Press (New York, NY), 2000.

The American Civil War: A Hands-On History, Hill & Wang (New York, NY), 2006.

Contributor to books, including Reader’s Guide to American History, edited by Peter J. Parish, Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers (Chicago, IL), 1998;Americans at War: Society, Culture, and the Homefront, edited by John P. Resch, Macmillan (New York, NY), 2004;The United States at War, ABC-Clio (New York, NY), 2005;The Mississippi Encyclopedia, edited by Charles Reagan Wilson, University Press of Mississippi (Jackson, MS), 2006;Georgia Women, Volume I, edited by Sarah E. Gardner and Ann Short Chirhart, University of Georgia Press (Athens, GA), 2007;Southern Families, University of Georgia Press (Athens, GA), c. 2007. Contributor of articles and book reviews to periodicals, including Alabama Review, Georgia Historical Quarterly, American Historical Review, Journal of Illinois History, Journal of American History, Journal of Women’s History, Journal of Military History, Filson History Quarterly, Journal of the Early Republic, Journal of the Early Republic Australasian Journal of American Studies, Southern Historian, Florida Historical Quarterly, and the Journal of Mississippi History.

SIDELIGHTS: Christopher J. Olsen is a historian whose primary interests include Southern and Civil War history. In his first book, Political Culture and Secession in Mississippi: Masculinity, Honor, and the Antiparty Tradition, 1830-1860, the author explores Mississippi politics during the antebellum period and presents his theory that, at that time, Mississippians were largely unconcerned about specific parties but were primarily influenced by face-to-face encounters with politicians. “They emphasized masculine honor as the bulwark of their political values,” wrote Journal of Southern History contributor Nicole Etcheson in her review of Political Culture and Secession in Mississippi. Noting that the author supports his case by close examination of voting records, Etcheson went on to write: “The statistical material is nicely balanced with literary and anecdotal evidence, ensuring that the stories of real people are never obscured.” The reviewer added: “This is not a dreary read.” Carlton Jackson, writing in the Mississippi Quarterly, commented: “At least with Mississippi . . . Professor Christopher J. Olsen sees secession as the ultimate act of masculinity.”

The American Civil War: A Hands-On History provides an overview of the Civil War by presenting the basic issues that led to the Civil War, those that arose during the course of the war, and the numerous concerns that followed in its aftermath. The author writes about the politics and social issues of the times and details numerous battles. “Effective interplay between context and contingency is Olsen’s authorial forte,” wrote Gilbert Taylor in Booklist.A Kirkus Reviews contributor commented that the author “gets the basic points across clearly and effectively.” Another reviewer writing in Publishers Weekly commented that the author “has produced a tightly written book ideal for anyone looking for a quick introduction to” the Civil War.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES

PERIODICALS

Booklist, June 1, 2006, Gilbert Taylor, review of The American Civil War: A Hands-On History, p. 22.

Journal of Southern History, May, 2002, Nicole Etcheson, review of Political Culture and Secession in Mississippi: Masculinity, Honor, and the Antiparty Tradition, 1830-1860, p. 448.

Kirkus Reviews, June 1, 2006, review of The American Civil War, p. 562.

Library Journal, August 1, 2006, Randall M. Miller, review of The American Civil War, p. 101.

Mississippi Quarterly, spring, 2002, Carlton Jackson, review of Political Culture and Secession in Mississippi, p. 288.

Publishers Weekly, May 15, 2006, review of The American Civil War, p. 58.

ONLINE

Indiana University Department of History Web site, http://www.indstate.edu/history/ (January 24, 2007), faculty profile of author and author’s curriculum vitae.*