Dael A. Norwood is a historian of nineteenth-century America, specializing in the global dimensions of U.S. politics and economics. He has a particular interest in the political economy of commerce: how the ideas and practices of international exchange have affected Americans’ relations with other powers, as well as their dealings with each other. His first book, Trading Freedom: How Trade with China Defined Early America (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2022) examines how the flourishing commerce between the United States and China intertwined with the struggles over sovereignty, citizenship and race that defined the first century of the American state. He has also written articles and essays about the role of commerce in shaping the Constitution, the historiography of political economy in the early republic, and the history of indentured servitude.

He is currently at work on two new projects: a book, tentatively titled The Beginnings of the Businessman, that investigates how and why “the businessman” emerged as such a powerful political persona in modern America; and an article, investigating how corporations became voters in Delaware’s municipal elections, and what that means for democracy.

At UD, Norwood teaches courses on the history of America in the world, capitalism, U.S. foreign relations, and American political economy. His students have rated him a “a cool dude” who assigns “a lot/good amount of reading.”

You can contact him at firstname dot lastname at gmail dot com, or via the methods listed on the c.v. linked above.