Dr. Lauren N. Henley
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Profile
Dr. Lauren Henley is a historian whose research examines youthfulness, race, gender, religion, and crime in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In general, she considers how Black women and girls became both the victims of and perpetrators of violent crimes in the rural industrial South.
Her current work explores two sides of a specific historical serial killer: the making of said identity and the local communities that were affected. By asking whether or not serial killers can be leaders, Henley seeks to understand how power and influence shape broader historical narratives about perceived criminality.
Henley's work has appeared in the Journal of African American History and Souls: A Critical Journal of Black Politics, Culture, and Society. She serves as a reviewer for academic journals and textbook supplements.
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Awards
Faculty Member of the Year Award, the Epsilon Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa, 2023
From Action to Impact Award, Bonner Foundation, 2025
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Awards
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Selected Publications
Journal Articles
Henley, Lauren N. "'Devilish Deeds': Serial Murder and Racial Violence in Austin, Texas, 1884-1885." Journal of African American History 105, no. 1 (2020): 1-27.
ReviewsHenley, Lauren N. “Review of ‘Murder in a Mill Town: Sex, Faith, and the Crime That Captivated a Nation’ by Bruce Dorsey.” The Journal of American History, 111, no. 3 (December 2024): 582-583.
Henley, Lauren N. “Review of ‘The Uncommon Case of Daniel Brown: How a White Police Officer Was Convicted of Killing a Black Citizen, Baltimore, 1875’ by Gordon H. Shufelt.” Journal of Southern History 88, no. 1 (2022): 180-181.
Henley, Lauren N. “Review of ‘Uncontrollable Blackness: African American Men and Criminality in Jim Crow New York’ by Douglas J. Flowe.” The Journal of African American History, 107, no. 3 (2022): 463-465.
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In the News
Episode 4: The Light of the Moon (a Devilish Deeds podcast)
Thu., Mar. 9, 2023