Theresa McCulla

I am a curator and public historian. My work investigates how Americans have used material and visual culture to understand race, ethnicity, and gender, especially in the realm of food and drink. My first book, Insatiable City: Food and Race in New Orleans, was published by the University of Chicago Press in May 2024.

As Curator of Mars, Incorporated, I document the history of one of the world’s largest chocolate, confectionery, food, and pet care companies. Previously, I worked as Curator of the American Brewing History Initiative at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History (NMAH). There, I recorded oral histories with dozens of members of the American brewing industry (transcripts may be accessed at the NMAH Archives Center); collected objects, documents, and photographs related to the growth of homebrewing and craft beer in the U.S., including the business records and artifacts belonging to San Francisco’s Anchor Brewing Company, days before before its liquidation; and exhibited the history of beer for the 2,000,000+ visitors who come to the American History Museum each year. Before joining the Smithsonian, I worked as Arcadia Fellow at the Colonial North American at Harvard Library Project (now, Worlds of Change); Food Literacy Project Coordinator at Harvard University Dining Services; and European media analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency.

I earned a PhD in American Studies and an MA in History from Harvard University and a BA in Romance Languages from Harvard College. I also earned a Culinary Arts Diploma from the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts and have cooked in sweet and savory restaurant kitchens in Cambridge, MA, and Washington, DC. My writing has been awarded by the James Beard Foundation and the North American Guild of Beer Writers. I am honored to have been named a 2023 “Signifier” by Good Beer Hunting, awarded to “people shaping the future of the [beer] industry,” and one of the 2020 “Imbibe 75” by Imbibe magazine, awarded to the “people, places, and directions that will shape the way you drink in 2020.”

Please find my current CV here.