The Walter C. Schnackenberg Memorial Lecture - April 28, 2026
George Washington and Slavery in American Memory
How should we remember George Washington’s involvement in slavery? What is the proper place of slavery in Washington’s legacy? On the eve of the nation’s semi quincentennial anniversary, these questions continue to roil public discourse. In this lecture, historian John Garrison Marks will share how, in fact, Americans have argued over these questions for nearly 250 years. More than any other “Founding Father,” Washington’s ties to slavery have vexed us. He enslaved more people than any of his fellow Founders, yet he was the only one of them to emancipate the people he held in bondage. Since his death, Americans have grappled with this contradiction, shaping and re-shaping our collective memory of Washington and slavery—along with our understanding of the nation.
Drawing on research from his new book, Marks traces how politicians, abolitionists, educators, activists, Washington’s former slaves and their descendants, and others have remembered, forgotten, and manipulated slavery’s place in Washington’s story, wielding it in the political and cultural fights of their time. He reveals how Americans’ conflicts over our collective memory of the past have always been part of a much broader struggle to define the nation—and ourselves.
John Garrison Marks
Speaker: John Garrison Marks is a historian and writer whose work has appeared in TIME, Washington Post, and Smithsonian Magazine. Marks currently serves as the Vice President of Research and Engagement at the American Association for State and Local History. Previously the author of Black Freedom in the Age of Slavery, he earned his Ph.D. from Rice University. Marks’ newest book is Thy Will Be Done: George Washington’s Legacy of Slavery and the Fight for American Memory, published in April 2026.
Speaker’s website: https://www.johngmarks.com/
Dr. Walter C. Schnackenberg graduated from Pacific Lutheran College in 1937. One of his most frequently expressed wishes was that Pacific Lutheran University might establish a lectureship which would bring to the campus distinguished members of the world academic community to discuss significant topics of historical interest.