News & Announcements

April 26, 2019

Call for Applications: Cromwell Research Fellowships

In 2019, the William Nelson Cromwell Foundation will make available a number of $5,000 fellowship awards to support research and writing in American legal history by early-career scholars. Early career generally includes those researching or writing a PhD dissertation (or equivalent project) and recent recipients of a graduate degree working on their first major monograph or research project. The number of awards made is at the discretion of the Foundation. In the past several years, the trustees of the Foundation have made between five and ten awards. Scholars who are not at the early stages of their careers may seek research grants directly from the Foundation. For more information, see the Grants page on the Cromwell Foundation’s website.

Application Process for 2019
The Committee for Research Fellowships and Awards of the American Society for Legal History (ASLH) reviews the applications and makes recommendations to the Foundation. (The Cromwell Foundation was established in 1930 to promote and encourage scholarship in legal history, particularly in the colonial and early national periods of the United States. The Foundation has supported the publication of legal records as well as historical monographs.)

To apply, please use this link.

After filling out an application form, applicants will be prompted to upload a description of their proposed project (double-spaced, maximum 6 pages including notes; please include a working title), a budget, a timeline, a short c.v. (no longer than 3 pages), and the names and contact information of two academic referees from whom the applicant has requested letters of recommendation.

Recommenders may upload their letters at this link.

Applications must be completed and recommendations received no later than midnight on July 1, 2019.

• Your application should make clear the relevance of law to your project. The most successful applicants demonstrate how law (broadly construed) is at the center of their projects, and how their research will tell us something new about law.
• Your proposal should engage with relevant scholarship in the field. While this discussion can be brief, the most successful applicants explain how their projects tell us something new.
• Your application should have a clear budget that is specific about how and where you plan to spend research funds.
• You will receive a confirmation email within a few days of submitting your application; if you do not receive such an email, please follow up.
• Please direct any questions to the committee at smayeri@law.upenn.edu and include “Cromwell” in the subject line.

During the pendency of their application, candidates for Fellowships should keep the Committee apprised of any change of address. Successful applicants will be notified by early November. An announcement of the awards will also be made at the annual meeting of the American Society of Legal History.

Committee Members
Serena Mayeri (2016), Chair
University of Pennsylvania

Kenneth Mack (2016)
Harvard University

Thomas J. McSweeney (2018)
College of William & Mary

Yvonne Pitts (2018)
Purdue University

Tracy Steffes (2017)
Brown University

Katherine Turk (2016)
University of North Carolina