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Duncan Speaker Series Premiers with Discussion of Transatlantic Slave Trade

(NORTHRIDGE, Calif., Sept. 25, 2006) -- Internationally recognized British historian Kenneth Morgan will inaugurate Cal State Northridge’s Robert M. Duncan Speaker Series on Tuesday, Oct. 10, with a discussion on the transatlantic slave trade.

His presentation, "The British Transatlantic Slave Trade: Volume and Distribution, 1698-1807," will take place at 7 p.m. in the Whitsett Room on the fourth floor of Sierra Hall, located on the west side of the campus at 18111 Nordhoff St. in Northridge.

Christopher Magra, the Robert M. Duncan Assistant Professor of American Economic History in CSUN’s Department of History, said the university was honored to have someone of Morgan’s caliber to inaugurate the speaker series.

"Dr. Morgan is one of the foremost historians of Atlantic commerce and he is coming all the way from England to give the presentation," Magra said. "This is a rare opportunity for those who attend the presentation to meet a famous historian. The talk will help everyone understand the importance of economic history, the impact of the slave trade and the importance of studying the history of slavery."

Morgan is a professor of history in the Brunel Business School outside London. He holds degrees from the universities of Leicester and Oxford. He has a special teaching and research interest in slavery and the slave trade. He authored six books and is the editor or co-editor of an additional six. His recent publications include Slavery in America: A Reader and Guide, Slavery and Servitude in Colonial North America: A Short History and Slavery, Atlantic Trade and the British Economy, 1660-1800. He is currently completing The Bright-Meyler Papers: A Bristol-West India Connection. His next book, Slavery and the British Empire, is due out next year.

Morgan’s presentation is free and open to the public. Parking is available for $4 at the information booth on Prairie Street east of Darby Avenue.

The event is sponsored by the Robert M. Duncan Program in American Economic History in Northridge’s College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. The program is committed to bringing internationally recognized scholars who specialize in some aspect of economic history.

For more information about the program or Morgan’s presentation, call the history department at (818) 677-3566.