American history, through food
Historian · Author · Curator · Speaker
I tell stories about the people, places, and everyday choices that have shaped American life—often through the food we share.
Featured book
Nourishing Networks: The Public Culture of Food in New Orleans
Oxford University Press, 2025
Who fed New Orleans, and who had the power to decide how? My book follows street vendors, market workers, and customers across generations to reveal how food shaped the city’s public culture—and how ordinary people shaped its food economy in return.
Buy from Politics & Prose, Kitchen Arts & Letters, Lost City Books, Oxford University Press, Amazon, or Walmart. Order directly from Oxford at global.oup.com with code AUFLY30 for 30% off.
Signed or inscribed copies are available, too. Get in touch for details.
Recent conversations
The Splendid Table — A conversation about Nourishing Networks (September 2026).
Bon Appétit — “How Food Becomes American” (June 2026).
New Books Network — A conversation about Nourishing Networks (May 2026).
Invite Ashley to speak
I speak with audiences at museums, libraries, universities, festivals, and community events. I’m available for lectures, moderated conversations, book events, food and cocktail demonstrations, podcasts, and media interviews on food history and American culture.
About Ashley
I’m the author of Nourishing Networks and Curator of American History in the Rare Book & Special Collections Division at the Library of Congress. Previously, I was historian of the Smithsonian Food History Project, where I hosted the Cooking Up History series. My work brings archival research into conversation with broad public audiences.
Writing and public history
From the stories hidden in rare books to the lives of the people who sold food on city streets, my writing connects historical research with questions we still ask today. Explore selected essays, interviews, and projects.
