History Professor Presents Research in Finland

Dr. Timothy Cuff, Westminster assistant professor of history, recently presented his research at the 14th International Economic History Congress in Helsinki, Finland.

Cuff's paper, "Geographic Pieces in the Antebellum Puzzle: Early Nineteenth-Century Pennsylvania as a Case Study," contains data on the geographic variation in mean human stature across Pennsylvania in the early decades of the nineteenth century.

"Mean stature among human groups of similar genetic composition is an effective indicator of biological well-being which can be studies separately from material well-being," Cuff said. "My paper argued for the importance of utilizing a geographic perspective in evaluating the biological impacts of economic development, the value of emerging geographic information systems software in such research, and the critical nature of assessing local conditions affecting health among historical populations.

"The anthropometric history panel in which I participated was well received by economic historians of all types. Many have come to understand the importance of biological indicators of well-being as one of several measuring sticks which should be used to assess the impact of economic development across space and time," Cuff said. "It also was humbling to learn that scholars from across the globe have begun to use portions of my book, The Hidden Cost of Economic Development: The Biological Standard of Living in Antebellum Pennsylvania, as texts for their students of economic history."

Cuff, who has been with Westminster College since 2000, earned his undergraduate degree from Westminster College, master's from Bowling Green State University, and Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. Cuff's attendance was underwritten by the Japanese government's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

Contact Cuff at (724) 946-6152 or e-mail cufft@westminster.edu for more information.

Dr. Timothy Cuff