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Department of History

Dr. Taylor Soja

Assistant Professor
History
Office
SCH Schroeder Hall 318
Office Hours
Tuesdays 2-3pm and Wednesdays 9:30-10:30, and by appointment
Office Phone
(309) 438-2843office
phone
Email
tmsoja@ilstu.eduemail
Website
https://www.taylorsoja.com/website
  • About
  • Education
  • Awards & Honors
  • Research

Biography

Dr. Soja is an Assistant Professor of History at Illinois State University.

Current Courses

HIS 338.001 Images of War

HIS 499.007 Independent Research For The Master's Thesis

HIS 102.003 Modern Western Civilization

HIS 102.004 Modern Western Civilization

HIS 490.008 Readings -- Field Of Study

HIS 291.009 Undergraduate Teaching Experience In History

HIS 228.001 Europe In The Nineteenth Century: 1815-1914

HIS 100.003 History Lab: Foundations of Historical Analysis

HIS 499.002 Independent Research For The Master's Thesis

HIS 402.001 Seminar In European History

Teaching Interests & Areas

I teach classes on British & European history, the history of war and society, European empires, women & gender, and historical methods and digital history.

Research Interests & Areas

I am a historian of modern Britain and the British empire. I specialize in the histories of war, gender, and empire with a focus on the long 19th century. My research explores the relationship between violence and empire using methods including the study of material culture, photography, family history, and group biography.

PhD History

University of Washington
Seattle, WA

MA

University of Washington
Seattle, WA

BA History

George Washington University
Washington, DC

Impact Award for Student Success

Illinois State University
2025

Influential and Inspirational Faculty Member

Department of History
2025

Influential and Inspirational Faculty Member

Department of History
2024

Influential and Inspirational Faculty Member

Department of History
2024

Influential and Inspirational Faculty Member

Department of History
2023

Influential and Inspirational Faculty Member

Department of History
2023

Interdisciplinary Pedagogical Project Award

Council for European Studies Critical European Studies Research Network
2021

Book, Chapter

Taylor Soja. “When the Post-War Isn’t Permanent: Coming Home in the Age of Britain’s Small Wars.” In Homecoming Veterans in Literature and Culture: Comparative and Interdisciplinary Perspectives, ed. Niels Boender, p. 135-151. London: Routledge, 2025.

Journal Article

“Kitchen Window Feminism: Sarah Macnaughtan, Wartime Care, and the Authority of Experience in the South African and First World Wars,” in “Health, Healing, and Caring,” eds. Kristin Burnett, Sara Ritchey, Lynn M. Thomas, special issue, Gender & History 33, no. 3 (Oct. 2021): 668-682.

Material Regarding New Courses/Curricula

Taylor Soja, “Victorian Histories for Today.” Jacqueline Barrios, peer rev.; Sophia Hsu, Jude Fogarty, assess. guide. Undisciplining the Victorian Classroom, 2025, https://undiscipliningvc.org/html/assignments/victorian_histories.html.

Presentations

What Comes After “What’s Your Favorite Battle?”: Rethinking War and Society in the History Classroom. History/Social Sciences Teacher Symposium. ISU History Education. (2023)
“When the Post-War Isn’t Permanent: Coming Home in the Age of Britain’s ‘Small Wars’”. Homecoming After War: Comparative and Interdisciplinary Perspectives. Humanities Research Centre, Warwick University. (2023)
“British Studies in the Digital World: NACBS Grad & Early Career Caucus Panel on Digital Humanities”. North American Conference on British Studies Grad & Early Career Caucus. (2022)
“Soldiers on the Move: Working Class War Stories in Britain’s Global Empire, c. 1880-1918,” International Conference of Europeanists, Council for European Studies, Lisbon, Portugal. 2022.
“Families Mobilized for Empire: Multi-Generation Military Service in the British Empire to 1918,” North American Conference on British Studies (NACBS), held online, 2020.
“Miss Macnaughtan’s Wars: South Africa, WWI, and the British Multi-War Experience,” New Voices in the History of War II, Society for the History of War, All Souls College, University of Oxford, UK. 2019.
“The Social World of Multi-War Service: Ernest Craig-Brown & Neville J.G. Cameron in South Africa, WWI, and Beyond,” North American Conference on British Studies (NACBS), Vancouver CA. 2019.

Grants & Contracts

CAS International Travel Fund. CAS. Illinois State University. (2023)
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation – Council for European Studies (Columbia University) Dissertation Completion Fellowship. Andrew W. Mellon Foundation – Council for European Studies (Columbia University). Private. (2021)