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Joss Harrison

PhD Student
Department of International History

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About

Joss Harrison is a full-time PhD candidate in International History at the London School of Economics and Department of International History. Their research explores Americans' evolving ideas about empire in the aftermath of the U.S. Civil War, in light of salient transnational social, political and economic trends of the post-Civil War period.

Joss has been awarded the Department of International History's PhD studentship (2025-29), the Department's Iris Forrester Prize for Outstanding International History (2024), and the LSE's Anne Bohm Postgraduate Scholarship (2023-24). Their research has been supported by grants from the British American Nineteenth Century Historians (BrANCH) and the LSE Phelan United States Centre. They have also written for the LSE American Politics and Policy Blog, the LSE Department of International History blog, and the LSE Department of International Relations blog.

Joss is proud to organise the International History Department’s annual EDI essay competition, which invites 16-18 year olds from around the UK to respond to a timely prompt in a historically informed way. In 2025-26, the competition was organised in collaboration with the British Library and the New York Public Library.

They are also a Co-Editor of the International History Department blog, a Postgraduate Representative for BrANCH, and a sub-warden for LSE Residential Life. They also write as a freelance journalist for The Day and work part-time for Labour Housing Group. In their personal time, Joss enjoys reading, cooking, language learning, and playing with their cat - with varying degrees of success.

Expertise Details: Cultural History, Gender, Masculinities, Imperialism, Transnational History

Topic of Research: Between Home and Abroad: Performances of Gender, Race, and Class in American Travel Writing, 1865-1875

Supervisor: Dr Imaobong Umoren