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Author’s Talk—The Killing of Jane McCrea: An American Tragedy on the Revolutionary Frontier
March 17, 2026 @ 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Paul Staiti, professor of fine arts at Mount Holyoke College, discusses his new book that, for the first time, undertakes a comprehensive investigation into the life, death, and legacy of Jane McCrea, who was killed by a Native American warrior serving alongside British general John Burgoyne’s 1777 expedition in New York. Using both visual arts and written records, Professor Staiti reassembles the scattered fragments of McCrea’s story to illuminate a historical terrain long since shrouded in misinformation, controversy, and mythology.
Registration is requested. To attend the author’s talk in-person, or to watch virtually, please use the appropriate links below.
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About the Speaker
Paul Staiti is the Alumnae Foundation Professor of Fine Arts at Mount Holyoke College. He is the author of books and essays on John Singleton Copley, Gilbert Stuart, Samuel F. B. Morse, William Michael Harnett and Winslow Homer. Throughout his career, he has lectured at the Louvre, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and has been the recipient of senior fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities three times. In 2009, he was honored with Mount Holyoke’s Distinguished Teacher award. Currently he teaches courses on American art and architecture, as well as American cinema.