In this book talk, Prof. Christopher Carlmsith discusses his homonymous book which tells the fascinating story of the organization from its origins to its fiftieth anniversary. Employing extensive archival research, oral interviews, and newspaper accounts, the book explores a range of topics, including leadership, conservation projects, fundraising, and educational outreach. Carlsmith traces the achievements and challenges faced by this and other historic preservation organizations and by this unique city on the sea.

Book Talk presented by Prof. Christopher Carlsmith, Professor of History, UMass Lowell.

Christopher Carlsmith is Professor of History at University of Massachusetts Lowell, where he has taught since 2001. He is currently Chair of the History Department (2017-2023), and Associate Editor of History of Education Quarterly (2020-present). He earned his undergraduate degree in History at Stanford University in 1986, and his Ph.D. in early modern European history at the University of Virginia in 1999. He was a Fulbright Scholar in Italy (1996-97) and a Fellow at Villa I Tatti (2009-10), Harvard University’s Center for Study of the Italian Renaissance. His first book was A Renaissance Education: Schooling and Society in Bergamo and the Venetian Republic, 1500-1650 (University of Toronto Press, 2010). In addition to studying the history of education in Renaissance Italy, Carlsmith has also published on the reception of Renaissance art and architecture in Gilded Age residences in the United States, and on the history of non-profits and academic societies, including his history of Save Venice Inc. (2022). 

*This lecture is free and open to the public but space is limited. Current members receive priority: Join or Renew

Image: Save Venice Inc.: American Philanthropy and Art Conservation in Italy, 1966-2021 (University of Massachusetts Press, 2022)