2026 Fall Speaker Series | Nobody Men: Neutrality and Loyalties in the American Revolution

At least one‑third of the colonial population were neutral during the American Revolution, yet they have rarely featured in narratives that shape our ideas about the conflict. By following a single transatlantic family, the Crugers, historian Travis Glasson puts neutrals—the “nobody men”—at the center of this tumultuous period’s history. Drawing from his new book Nobody Men: Neutrality, Loyalties, and Family in the American Revolution, Travis Glasson, Associate Professor of History at Temple University, will explore the overlooked individuals of the Revolutionary era who fell between patriot and loyalist—highlighting how their choices shaped the Atlantic world.

About Travis Glasson

Travis Glasson is a historian of early America, Britain, the British Empire, and the transnational Atlantic world. He is an Associate Professor in the History Department at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA, and an Affiliated Faculty member of Temple’s Global Studies Program. He completed his MA and PhD at Columbia University and graduated from the College of the Holy Cross and LaSalle Academy in Providence, Rhode Island. Glasson is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and has received grants and fellowships from institutions including the Whiting Foundation, the John Carter Brown Library, the Huntington Library, the Harvard University Atlantic Seminar, the American Historical Association, and Clare Hall at the University of Cambridge. His publications include the books, Nobody Men: Neutrality, Loyalties, and Family in the American Revolution (Yale University Press, 2025), Mastering Christianity: Missionary Anglicanism and Slavery in the Atlantic World (Oxford University Press, 2012), and articles in journals including the William and Mary Quarterly and the Journal of British Studies.

See his new book here: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300258899/nobody-men/

About the 2026 Fall Speaker Series – Reflecting at 250

Join the Fairfield Museum for a series exploring how American history is interpreted and retold today now that the United States has marked the milestone of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Prominent historians will examine how storytelling shapes our understanding of history, highlight whose voices are amplified versus whose are marginalized, and offer contemporary perspectives on our nation’s past. Together, we will discover how the choices about what to remember—and what to overlook—shape national identity and ongoing debates about the American past and future.

Additional Lectures in the Series:

September 20 | Stories of Connecticut’s Black Patriots | John Mills

October 4 | The Will of the People | T.H. Breen

October 18 | From Liberty to Legacy: Exploring American Ideals in the Musicals 1776 and Hamilton | Michael Langlois

Light refreshments provided.

Registration is required. $15 for Members; $20 for Non-Members; $75 for the series; $60 for Members.

Ticketing Policy

• No refunds will be given unless the program is cancelled by the Fairfield Museum.
• We do not pro-rate fees for missed days of the series.