Âé¶¹´«Ã½

Ben Wynne, Ph.D.

Ben Wynne

Professor, History

Phone678-717-3569

Office locationStrickland Academic, 123,

Area(s) of Expertise: History of American South, Southern history, Antebellum American History, Civil War history

Overview

Author and historian Ben Wynne is a native of Florence, Mississippi. He earned his doctorate in history at the University of Mississippi and currently serves as professor of history at the Âé¶¹´«Ã½ in Gainesville, Georgia. He is the author of numerous works on southern history and culture and American history in general.

Courses Taught

  • U.S. History to 1877
  • U.S. History from 1877
  • World History from 1500
  • A Multi-Cultural History of Blues and Rock and Roll Music
  • Race and Ethnicity in America
  • History of the South through the 19th Century
  • History of the South in the 20th Century
  • Civil War and Reconstruction
  • The Civil Rights Era
  • History of American Sports
  • Images of the South Through Film
  • The American West

Education

  • Ph.D., History, University of Mississippi, 2000
  • M.A., History, Mississippi College, 1995
  • B.B.A., Business Administration, Millsaps College, 1984

Research/Special Interests

Research interests include southern culture, particularly music and politics, as well as antebellum American history and Civil War studies.

Publications

I. Books:

The Man Who Punched Jefferson Davis: The Political Life of Henry Stuart Foote, Southern Unionist. Louisiana State University Press, 2018.

In Tune: Charley Patton, Jimmie Rodgers, and Roots of American Popular Music. Louisiana State University Press, 2014. [Audio edition, 2017]

Mississippi’s Civil War: A Narrative History. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 2006. [Paperback edition, 2015]

A Hard Trip: A History of the 15th Mississippi Infantry, C.S.A., 1861-1865. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 2003. [Paperback edition, 2010]

A Hound Dale Tale: Big Mama, Elvis and the Song That Changed Everything, Lousiana State University Press, 2024

Something in the Water: A history of Music in Macon, Ga, 1823-1980, Mercer Univeristy Press, 2021

II. Books Edited with Introduction

‘The Personal Observations of a Man of Intelligence’: Notes of a Tour of North America in 1861, by James Fergusson. Lambertville, NJ: The True Bill Press, 2009.

III. Book Introductions

  • Introduction: The Rise the Confederate Government, by Jefferson Davis. New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 2010.
  • Introduction: The Fall of the Confederate Government, by Jefferson Davis. New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 2010.
  • Introduction: Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War, by G.F.R. Henderson. New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 2006.
  • Introduction: Mosby’s Memoirs, by John S. Mosby. New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 2006.
  • Introduction: Recollections and Letters of Robert E Lee, by Robert E. Lee. New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 2004.

IV. Encyclopedia Entries:

Contributor to the following:

  • Encyclopedia of Race and Ethnicity (ABC-CLIO Forthcoming)
  • Encyclopedia of The Atlantic World, 1400-1900 (ABC-CLIO, 2017).
  • The Mississippi Encyclopedia (University Press of Mississippi, 2017).
  • Encyclopedia of the War of 1812 (The Bandy Heritage Center for Northwest Georgia, 2016).
  • Religion and Politics in America: An Encyclopedia of Church and State in American Life (ABC-CLIO, 2016).
  • Chinese-Americans: A History and Culture of a People (ABC-CLIO, 2015).
  • Imperialism and Expansionism in American History: A Social, Political, and Cultural Encyclopedia and Document Collection. (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2015).
  • Encyclopedia of Populism in America (ABC-CLIO, 2014).
  • American Civil War: The Definitive Encyclopedia and Document Collection (ABC-CLIO 2014).
  • Encyclopedia of the 1960s (ABC-CLIO, 2012).
  • Encyclopedia of the War of 1812 (ABC-CLIO, 2012).
  • Encyclopedia of Movies and American Culture (ABC-CLIO, 2011).
  • Encyclopedia of Native American History (Facts on File, 2011).
  • Encyclopedia of Slavery in the Americas (Facts on File, 2011)).
  • The Cultural Encyclopedia of Alcohol (ABC-CLIO, 2010).
  • America in World History (M.E. Sharpe, Inc., 2010).
  • Sports in America from Colonial Times to the Twenty-First Century: An Encyclopedia (M.E. Sharp. Inc., 2011).
  • Encyclopedia of African-American History, 1896-Present (Oxford University Press, 2009).
  • Encyclopedia of Global Health (SAGE, 2008).
  • Encyclopedia of the Jazz Age (M. E. Sharp, 2008).
  • One Day in History: September 11, 2001 (HarperCollins and Smithsonian Books, 2007). One Day in History: July 4, 1776 (HarperCollins and Smithsonian Books, 2006).
  • One Day in History: December 7, 1941 (HarperCollins and Smithsonian Books, 2006).
  • Encyclopedia of the American Revolutionary War (ABC-CLIO, 2006).
  • Tariffs and Trade in U.S. History: An Encyclopedia (Greenwood Press, 2003).
  • The American Economy: A Historical Encyclopedia (ABC-CLIO, 2003).
  • Encyclopedia of the America Civil War. (ABC-CLIO, 2000).

V. Book Reviews

Reviews have appeared in the following academic journals:

  • Civil War History
  • Georgia Historical Quarterly
  • The Historian
  • Indiana Magazine of History
  • Journal of American History
  • Journal of Mississippi History
  • Journal of Southern History
  • Kansas History
  • Maryland Historical Magazine
  • Missouri Historical Review
  • New Mexico Historical Review
  • North Carolina Historical Review
  • Register of the Kentucky Historical Society
  • South Carolina Historical Magazine
  • Southwestern Historical Quarterly
  • Tennessee Historical Quarterly
  • Virginia Magazine of History and Biography

Work Experience

Âé¶¹´«Ã½, Department of History, Anthropology, and Philosophy, College of Arts and Letters—Professor of History (2005-present)

Valdosta State University, Department of History—Adjunct Professor (2005).

Florida State University, Department of History—Visiting Assistant Professor (2002-2004).

University of Mississippi, Department of History—Full Time Instructor (2000-2002).

Personal Information

Wife: Carly

Children: Lily and Cotton