DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY

Part I: 

Meet Northwestern undergraduate student researchers Natalie, Rhys, and Kaleah—explore the exciting projects they’re working on in the lab!

Part II:

Undergraduate students Natalie Roots-Nowakowski and Rhys Reilly continue to share their research experiences in the lab.

Question 1: How did you get started working at the lab?

NATALIE: I took all of Professor Ogundiran’s undergraduate classes, because I found this love of history specifically, and I felt like it was a big knowledge gap in my understanding of African history. During his classes, he always takes them to the lab for a little field trip. And so, through that I was able to see all these amazing artifacts and realize that there is so much that we can discover through the daily materials that ancient Africans utilized.

RHYS: I took one of his classes, and we had a field trip here. I wanted to do research in general, mostly, and then I found that the artifacts here were very interesting to me. And then, so, I asked him if he had any positions at the lab available. I was basically down to doing anything.

Question 2: In what ways has your experience in the lab shaped your understanding of research?

RHYS: I am appreciative of how collaborative it’s been here, compared to what I had pictured doing when it came to research beforehand. I work with a bunch of different people here, and I’m not trying to just do stuff by myself. And now we’re working on this paper together; my experience here has been all very collaborative. It’s been sort of a challenge, yeah, but mostly just exciting to work with other people.

NATALIE: I think we’re very, very lucky, because based on what I have heard about research positions, it’s a lot of administrative work, a lot of office work. But we really have the privilege to be able to interact with these objects physically, which I think is really unique, and actively learn from them by touching them, which is really cool.

Question 3: What have you found most exciting about your research experience in the lab?

NATALIE: What was really exciting to me is: all the documents that archeologist Robert Soper sent over to Professor Ogundiran. I was going through them a few weeks ago, and I found these amazing maps. And I’m a really, really big map fan. So it was really cool to see how everything is visually documented. That was exciting, ‘where is the pottery factory, where are the roads.’ And what that can tell us about the organization of space and people.

RHYS: I’m looking forward to helping Professor Ogundiran in whatever he’s hoping to discover. Or whatever ideas he has in his head. I’m also excited to contribute to a publication for the first time in my life and just be part of research here at the lab as I have been for the past year and as I go forward in what I’m going to do with my life.

Part III:

Read About Students Mariam and Rachel's Material History Research Experience at the Society of Africanist Archaeologists in Portugal

Image displays Prof. Akin Ogundiran with students Mariam Fofana and Rachel Smith at the SAA in Portugal.

By Mariam Fofana 

If you had told me during my first year of college that excavated lamps would carry me across the Atlantic, I would have stared at you in confusion, but intrigue. Yet this past summer, my research in the Material History Lab quite literally became my passport, with the gracious travel sponsorship of the Nicholas Chabraja Center for Historical Studies, the Weinberg College, Office of Undergraduate Research, and the Material History Lab. Attending the 27th Biennial Meeting of the Society of Africanist Archaeologists, hosted by the University of Algarve in Faro, Portugal, was such an important catalyst for how I now understand both my work and myself as a scholar.

I attended the conference with my colleagues from the Material History Lab, including a peer from my graduation cohort. In the Lab, I study the social lives of metal artifacts excavated from Ede-Ile, a colony of the Oyo Empire, dating from roughly 1600 to 1840. My research asks what these objects can tell us about everyday life in one of the empire’s thriving centers. Working at the intersection of archaeology, history, and anthropology has taught me to see artifacts as actors entrenched in social worlds. Preparing to share this work on an international stage also necessitated that I treat these artifacts as living histories.

The conference itself was awe-inspiring. In packed lecture halls overlooking the stunning university campus, I listened to scholars present research spanning heritage preservation, museum culture, and archaeometallurgy. Watching seasoned archaeologists debate interpretation and methodology made visible the intellectual generosity of the field. What surprised me most was how warmly my work was received. Senior scholars treated my project with seriousness, even after learning that I am still an undergraduate. Additionally, being introduced to Professor Ogundiran’s extensive network showed me how relational academia truly is. Scholarship is not produced in isolation and the kind of trust that comes from research is built over decades.

Outside of formal presentation sessions, the conference also helped me establish unexpected connections. I formed a friendship with a graduate student based in the United Kingdom who researches “ordinary” objects in museum collections and works through establishing best practices based on the needs of communities worldwide. Since returning to the United States, we have met virtually several times to discuss our scholarly interests and future plans. Once again, I was shown that conferences are seedbeds for the intellectual community.

Leaving Portugal, I felt changed. Presenting my research abroad helped me see the progression of my research from a campus project into part of a global conversation about African histories. It also affirmed my dedication to pursuing graduate study and intensified my confidence that I belong in these scholarly spaces. I am grateful to know that my calling to recover and share

African pasts with rigor and imagination is supported by both the Material History Lab and the History Department.

By Rachel Smith

West African history is my history, and its underrepresentation in my formal education has deepened my desire to know more.

After emailing different professors about my profound interest, I was eventually connected with Professor Ogundiran, who introduced me to the Material History Lab and let me work as a research assistant, studying the domestic pottery of a prominent, state-related household codenamed MJR1. This opportunity has since defined my Northwestern career.

When people ask about my best Northwestern experiences, the Material History Lab is, without a doubt, top of mind. Through the lab, I was able to utilize my data science major to analyze data on a subject matter I treasured. I learned how to scan ceramic sherds with lasers and form projected vessel shapes. I dove deep into literature about how interwoven household formation, gender, and politics were in West African material history, strengthening my understanding and interpretation of our findings. I got to present our work at the 2025 Society of Africanist Archaeologists conference in Portugal. I met and learned from dozens of admirable scholars and archaeologists moving the needle in different areas of the continent.

Not only did I feel closer to my heritage by studying a similar culture, but my work mattered. I was a part of the efforts pushing West African history forward in unprecedented ways, making the change I wanted to see in the world. I cannot wait to see how the Material History Lab continues to make groundbreaking discoveries after I graduate. This experience has given me hope that West African history can and will continue to be a necessary field of study.

I’m incredibly grateful to all the people who made this experience possible. Major thanks to the Office of Undergraduate Research, Chabraja Center for Historical Studies, and Cardiss Collins Professorship for sponsoring my trip. Finally, special thanks to Professor Ogundiran for the support, wisdom, and mentorship.

If you are a NU student seeking research experience, contact Professor Akin Ogundiran at ogundiran@northwestern.edu or check out the Material History Lab website here.

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