The Frank and Virginia Williams Chair for Abraham Lincoln and Civil War Studies
The Frank and Virginia Williams Chair for Abraham Lincoln and Civil War Studies is a tenured position in the Department of History.
The Williams Chair promotes the Williams Collection of Lincolniana through outreach including:
- Partnering with MSU Libraries to present the annual Williams Lecture on Abraham Lincoln and Civil War Studies
- Collaborating with the Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library
- Teaching classes for students and the public
- Offering research grants and opportunities
- Hosting outreach events for the public
Current Williams Chair
Dr. Susannah J. Ural
2023 - Present
A military historian by training, Ural specializes in nineteenth-century America, with an emphasis on the experiences of U.S. Civil War soldiers and their families. She is also interested in the policies developed by Abraham Lincoln and the War Department that won the U.S. Civil War, and how these policies evolved during and after the conflict. Ural is the author of numerous books and articles on the U.S. Civil War and Reconstruction eras and a regular speaker at national and international events focused on Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War and Reconstruction.
