Jacob Mach

Jacob Mach, PhD

Biography

Dr. Jacob Mach attended Cedarville University from 2014–18 and joined the faculty in 2026. He teaches courses in both US and European history. His dissertation focuses on African American political activism in 19th century Ohio and the alliance between Ohio Republicans and African Americans in the Civil War and Reconstruction era.

Education and Credentials

• PhD in history, Purdue University
• MA in history, Bowling Green State University
• BA in history, Cedarville University

Scholarly Works

• "'The most progressive of our people' — The Black Laws, African American Development, and the Construction of a Distinct Political Identity in the Buckeye State, 1803–1860," in Unsettling the Heartland: Black Americans and the Making of the Midwest, ed. Sara Gallagher and Jennifer Sdunzik (forthcoming with University of Illinois Press).
• “Immigrant Voters, Party Politics, and Black Suffrage in Reconstruction Ohio,” in The Proceedings of the Ohio Academy of History, 2020–22. Published October 2022. https://www.ohioacademy ofhistory.org/2022/10/18/2020-2022-proceedings-pandemic-edition/.

Interests

• Watching sports (football, soccer, and golf)
• Playing golf
• Watching movies
• Spending time with my wife

Expert Topics

• United States History
• 19th-Century US History
• Civil War and Reconstruction
• Early American History

Why Cedarville?

Both my wife and I remain extremely grateful for the time we spent at Cedarville. While my experience as a whole was life-changing, the Lord used the Department of History and Government and its faculty especially to help me grow academically, spiritually, and individually. This University and its faculty are wholly committed not just to academic excellence but to biblical fidelity. I am so excited to be a part of Cedarville and its mission to faithfully proclaim the Gospel and help our students think biblically about the history of the world God created.