Dr. MacLeod chairs UE’s department of History, Politics, and Social Change, which encompasses a vast assortment of areas of study. Dr. MacLeod has a plethora of different research interests himself, from 19th century Christianity in Scotland to WWII history right here in Evansville. In his free time, Dr. MacLeod illustrates political cartoons which have appeared in news sources across the country! We covered lots of ground in Dr. MacLeod’s interview, which is available in its entirety in the digital version of this article at crescent.evansville.edu. 

Dr. MacLeod’s first research area concerned the origins and history of his local Presbyterian church in Scotland. He studied the social and political influences on his church’s history, uncovering themes that are familiar to many Americans today. In both 19th century Scotland and modern-day America, the advance of science and changes in society cause new and changing perspectives on traditional beliefs. In Dr. MacLeod’s experience, this situation gives churches two options: either compromise with or accept modern beliefs or turn their backs on them entirely. Either choice can result in cultural and religious divisions, which are easily visible in America today. 

In the midst of these religious decisions and cultural changes, conversations about individuals’ beliefs, their implications, and the reasons behind them continue to be both critically important and highly sensitive. Religion is a key component of many peoples’ identities and worldviews, so talking about it with the genuine desire to listen and learn can help us get to know and appreciate our peers and create a culture of respect and understanding. Proceeding in this way helped Dr. MacLeod study religious history, a complicated subject requiring both delicacy and objectivity. 

Some of Dr. MacLeod’s family members served in the British army medical corps in WWI. Eventually, Dr. MacLeod’s long-term curiosity about this time period developed into a new area of professional interest focusing on the impact of the First World War on religion. He knew that during WWI many nations drew a connection between dying in battle for one’s country and entering automatically into Heaven. In order to analyze this connection, Dr. MacLeod studied 1,177 WWI memorials during a sabbatical in 2012. He found that the vast majority (around 80%) did have religious themes, with a smaller number (around 13%) having iconography or text he considered unusually religious. He explained that, depending on how one views the data, this could mean either that people remained religious in spite of all of the horrors of the First World War or that the challenges of the war made many people only superficially religious. 

Finally, after more time spent here at UE, Dr. MacLeod began researching local Evansville history. He confessed that he used to look down on local history but has since discovered that “local history is the foundation on which everything else is built, and it’s important to know your own roots and where you come from.” His investigation of the time period during and after the Second World War has resulted in books, lectures, and even a documentary on Evansville’s history and culture! The documentary, which the local Showplace Cinema aired, featured oral histories from Evansville locals. The film allowed those who would otherwise be absent from history books to tell their stories about experiencing WWII and segregation in Evansville. 

Currently, Dr. MacLeod continues to research post-war Evansville. He published a new book, Lost Evansville, in 2023, and hopes to continue learning and writing about the local Civil Rights Movement in the future. In 2017 he also released a book on a prior Evansville Courier cartoonist Karl Kae Knecht (1883-1972), 6,000 of whose original cartoons reside in the UE library archives! 

Often, students may fear that their areas of study and research interests may restrict their work opportunities, graduate school studies, and research specialties in academic careers, but Dr. MacLeod’s story is a testimony to the fact that this isn’t always the case! Dr. MacLeod explained that many academics’ interests change over time, and that even if they have to set aside an interest for a time they can sometimes return to and study it later. He encourages students who are interested in academic careers to pursue them in spite of the difficulties of graduate school and not let their fears stop them from attempting what they dream of doing. 

No matter the range of one’s academic interests, it’s important to have hobbies and skills outside of academia. For Dr. MacLeod, one such passion is creating political cartoons. After years of doodling and consistent practice he expanded his cartoon’s audience through a blog, from which newspapers began picking up his work. Today, the Evansville Courier publishes one of Dr. MacLeod’s cartoons every week! The cartoons comment on and highlight both national politics and local events. 

Dr. MacLeod shared that drawing cartoons has a very different methodology and goal than conducting his research, even if both mediums touch on similar themes. Cartoons take a strong stance on a complex issue without explaining any of the nuance of the situation. Scholarly research, on the other hand, attempts to look at many angles of an issue objectively before arguing one position at length.

Many artists struggle to share their work with a wider audience. Here is some advice from Dr. MacLeod for getting your work out there: 

1. Use repetition to practice and perfect your craft. 

2. Have persistence when you try to share your work. 

3. Be willing to face rejection, take suggestions, and listen to your critics to improve what you do. 

4. Having an opinion or vision is often more important than perfect technique. 

5. Don’t let the fact that you’re still developing and improving stop you from sharing your work right now! 

In 2015, Dr. MacLeod created one cartoon of which he’s particularly proud. In response to an ISIS gunman’s slaughter of 12 Charlie Hebdo cartoonists in Paris, Dr. MacLeod illustrated a cartoon uplifting the power of creativity over the terror of violence. The cartoon went viral, and Dr. MacLeod said that the national response was “like nothing else in my cartooning life.” The cartoon appeared in newspapers including the Washington Post and on networks such as CNN and NPR, The State Department put the image on its website’s landing page for three days, and MSNBC and other channels interviewed Dr. MacLeod about his work. This cartoon’s reception stands a testament to the power of art to convey powerful ideas and unify people in the face of tragedy. 

When asked for his final thoughts, Dr. MacLeod stressed his gratitude he has felt for the privilege of teaching from his first day at Harlaxton after getting his PhD to teaching and interacting with students every day at UE. He believes in UE’s students and their abilities and encourages them not to pay too much attention to those who complain about “students today.” According to Dr. MacLeod, people have always complained about students. He said that in some ways “students have always been terrible,” but more importantly “they’ve also always been awesome!” 

Want to view Dr. MacLeod’s cartoons? Find his work on Facebook and X under “MacLeod Cartoons.” 

Stay tuned for future faculty research spotlights in upcoming issues of Crescent Magazine! 

Are you a faculty member who is interested in being featured? Contact Grace Gleisner at gg126@evansville.edu.