About

Instruction and information for historians. Into your inbox every two weeks.

How-to History is here to help historians. We explain events, concepts, things, themes and sources to help with the practice of researching, writing and teaching history. Each ‘How-to’ is a short guide of under a thousand words which directs you to further resources.

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People

How-to History is run by Joe Saunders and Anna Cusack. Joe works as a freelance historical researcher and writer (www.josephsaundershistory.co.uk). He is a Trustee and Vice-Chair of the British Association for Local History, and an Associate of the Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives. He teaches history at the University of York, the Centre for Lifelong Learning, and for Pharos Tutors. Anna holds a PhD from Birkbeck, University of London where she is an Honorary Research Fellow. In 2022-3 she was a Course Director at the University of Essex and has worked as a Research Assistant at the Universities of Leicester and Erfurt, and on the AHRC funded 'Power of Petitioning' project. She is an ECR board member for History, the journal of the Historical Association. Joe and Anna are both Associate Fellows of the Royal Historical Society.

Contributing authors:

Jay Hancock writes about history and society. He was the diplomatic correspondent and the economics correspondent for The Baltimore Sun. His articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post and elsewhere. In 2020 he was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in investigative journalism. His free Substack is here. He can be contacted on jayhancock@protonmail.com.

Jennifer Putnam is a historian and linguist. She is currently a Conny Kristel Fellow with the European Holocaust Infrastructure. Jennifer submitted her PhD thesis on graffiti in Nazi concentration camps and ghettos at Birkbeck College, University of London in August 2023. Her most recent article is entitled ‘The Struggle Against Timelessness: Prisoner Experiences of Time in Nazi Concentration Camps and Ghettos’.

Write for us: We are keen to share the knowledge of fellow historians. Please email us if you are interested in writing a post: howtohistory@substack.com

Thanks to all those who have provided help and advice on posts and the project: Pam Smith, Natalie Pithers, Helen Shields, Wendy Tait Mayfield, Dave Annal, Kate Rose (Kresen Kernow), and Janet Barrie.