Lawrence Henry Gipson Institute for Eighteenth-Century Studies
Director: Michelle LeMaster, Ph.D
Email: mil206@lehigh.edu | Phone: 610-758-3358
Website: https://gipson.cas.lehigh.edu/
Supported by the Office of Research and Graduate Studies, 610-758-4280
Maginnes Hall, Suite 490, 9 West Packer Avenue
Gipson Council: Eugene Albulescu, MM (Department of Music), William Bulman, PhD (Department of History); Lyndon Dominique, PhD (Department of English); Scott Paul Gordon, PhD (Department of English); Michael Jorgensen, DMA (Department of Music); Michelle LeMaster, PhD (Department of History); Monica Najar, PhD (Department of History); John Savage, PhD (Department of History); Maria Bárbara Zepeda-Cortés, PhD (Department of History)
The Lawrence Henry Gipson Institute for Eighteenth-Century Studies was established in 1971, to honor one of America’s most distinguished scholars, who served as a long-time member of the faculty at Lehigh. Gipson’s monumental life work, The British Empire Before the American Revolution (15 volumes) was written between 1936 and 1970. Gipson received the Pulitzer Prize in History in 1962 for Volume 10, subtitled, The Great War For Empire. Professor Gipson left a generous bequest to establish the institute, which forms the basis for the current endowment.
Research Activities
The income from the endowment of the institute is used to encourage faculty and student research in the eighteenth century by providing grants to defray travel costs, copying, and other expenses to permit scholars to visit necessary libraries and depositories. Over the years, the institute has also helped provide additional resources to build the university library's research collections in eighteenth-century studies.
Educational Opportunities
The institute regularly invites leading scholars to give lectures on research related to eighteenth century topics in a variety of disciplines. The institute maintains a continuing close relationship with Lehigh University Press for publishing original manuscripts on the eighteenth century.
