Dr. Ken Banks
Dr. Ken Banks
Award-winning historian, teacher, and author exploring maritime empires, revolution, and the lives of ordinary people in the eighteenth-century Atlantic World. Professor of History at Wofford College — available for talks, readings, and bookstore events.
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Books
Two books spanning the reach — and the limits — of empire across the eighteenth-century Atlantic. Buy links open the retailer in a new tab.
A Sea of Possibilities
University of Virginia Press, 2026
This true story of ambitious sea captain Thomas Allen and his family shows why the sea and maritime life profoundly mattered in the founding of the American Republic. Starting as a smuggling sea captain with a huge debt to pay, Allen eventually became a wealthy, Loyalist merchant who established the first coffee house in Connecticut. Despite losing nearly everything during the War for Independence, Allen rebuilt and re-invented himself, emerging from the crucible of revolution as an outspoken champion of the new Constitution and Republic. Like the Revolution itself, Allen's story is one of reinvention in a rapidly changing world.
Chasing Empire Across the Sea
Drawing from a vast range of sources, this innovative book explores the vital role of transatlantic communications in shaping French imperialism during the eighteenth century. It demonstrates that deep divisions between colonial leaders, lack of funding, and cultural perceptions limited France's imperial aspirations far more than the difficulties and logistics of sea voyages or land travel.
“The book is a delight to read and should find an appreciative audience beyond the circle of specialists of France's overseas expansion.” — Robert Aldrich, University of Sydney
Articles, Essays & Reviews
Selected recent writing. For the full record of publications, fellowships, and professional work, see the CV.
Curriculum Vitae
Selected highlights below. Download the full CV for the complete record.
Fields
Ocean Mobilities; American Revolutionary Atlantic; Atlantic World Economic; Early Modern Contraband
Books
- 2026A Sea of Possibilities: The Revolutionary Atlantic World of Captain Thomas Allen. University of Virginia Press, The Revolutionary Age Series (2026).
- 2002Chasing Empire Across the Sea: Communications and the State in the French Atlantic, 1713–1763. McGill-Queen's University Press. — Winner, Heggoy Prize for Best Book in French Colonial History; finalist, Klibansky and Chinard Prizes.
Appointments
- 2022–Professor of History, Wofford College
- 2014–22Associate Professor, Wofford College
- 2009–14Assistant Professor, Wofford College
- 2007–09Assistant Professor, University of Ottawa, Canada
Education
- 1996Ph.D., History, Queen's University, Canada
- 1990M.A., History, Queen's University, Canada
- 1983B.A., Communications, Concordia University, Canada
Recent Fellowships & Awards
- 2024NEH Long-Term Fellow, John Carter Brown Library
- 2019SCICU Excellence in Teaching Award
- 2016Hartland Fellowship in Maritime History, John Carter Brown Library
- 2012, 2018, 2023Wofford College Summer Research Grants
About Me
My life has been one of fluid geographic and vocational mobility. I was born in Southern California, lived briefly in Hawai'i, then grew up in Vancouver, Canada, where I learned a bit of sailing. I worked in a variety of jobs — teamster, busboy, janitor, office clerk, warehouseman, ad designer — and also completed military training in the Canadian Militia (Signal Corps). After graduating with a B.A. in Communications in Montréal, Canada, I worked for a few years in the Canadian film industry, mainly in lighting.
Then I took a night school history course, and fell in love. I returned to university, and quickly completed an M.A. and Ph.D in history, working primarily under James Pritchard and David Eltis. After graduating, I was fortunate enough to join the second Harvard Atlantic History Seminar directed by Bud Bailyn. But history jobs were few. After many, many stints as an adjunct and visiting assistant professor, I eventually landed a wonderful tenure-track position at Wofford College in South Carolina.
My teaching and research follow the mobility of ships, goods, ideas, and people across the eighteenth-century Atlantic Ocean world. I am fascinated how people from diverse backgrounds lived, loved, moved, and understood their own lives within or adjacent to the French and British imperial domains. Given my life navigating between two countries and seven very different environments, I suppose the interest in mobility came naturally.
Beyond the archive, I love bringing history alive to all audiences — at bookstores, festivals, in classrooms, and on podcasts. If that sounds like your event, I'd be glad to hear from you!
Talks & Events
Available for bookstore readings, author talks, panels, classroom visits, and podcast interviews.
Upcoming & recent
- Sep 26, 2026Presenting a paper at the New England Historical Association's Fall Conference, Fairfield University, Connecticut.
- Oct 1, 2026Discussing A Sea of Possibilities in the JCB Reads Series, hosted by Dr. Karin Wulf, Director of the John Carter Brown Library.
- Nov 17, 2026Presenting a paper at the Pauline Maier Early American History Seminar, Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston.
Contact & Booking
Send a note through the form and it comes straight to my inbox — so I can review each inquiry personally.
Other ways to connect
Prefer to find me elsewhere? I keep a light presence on a few platforms.