Bio

Wallace received a B.A. (History) from the University of Tennessee, and an M.A. (History) from the College of William & Mary. He is currently writing his dissertation, "In the Chieftains’ Shadows: the Deep South Confronts its Ancient Indian Past, 1730-1865," which analyzes the ways southerners have imagined the ancient South and interacted with its ruins. The effort draws heavily from Africanist historical practice, and combines methods from Anthropology, Ethnomusicology, and History. Ultimately, it is an attempt to connect prehistoric and historic southern worlds.

Wallace has lectured on southern folk music and presented work at numerous conferences, including the Southern Historical Association and the Western Historical Association; and was recently awarded a 2011 J. Carlyle Sitterson Visiting Scholar Grant at The Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Aside from his dissertation, he is currently also at work: writing an essay on the evolution of slavery in Tennessee for a collection of essays with the University of Tennessee Press (Before the Volunteer State: New Thoughts on Early Tennessee History, Kristofer Ray, ed. [2013]); producing a festival exhibit meant to connect Appalachian landscape conservation and appreciation of modern Appalachian art with Appalachian history, “Appalachia: Expression of Autumn, Agony, and Hope” (~fall, 2013).