Biography

Robert A. Margo is Professor of Economics and African-American Studies at Boston University, and a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1982. From 1981 to 1986 he taught at the University of Pennsylvania. In 1987 he moved to Colgate University where he held the Banfi Vintners’ Distinguished Professorship in American Economic History. From 1989 to 2005 he taught at Vanderbilt University. Margo has also been a visiting professor at Harvard University and at Bard College. A specialist in the history of the American economy with particular emphasis on the economic history of African-Americans, Margo is the author or co-author of four books and over one hundred articles, book chapters and book reviews. He has served on the editorial boards of many journals, including the Journal of Economic History, the American Economic Review, and the Quarterly Journal of Economics. Formerly a co-editor of the Southern Economic Journal, Margo is currently the editor of Explorations in Economic History.

Margo is an accomplished performer on classical guitar and classical mandolin. He has given solo and duo performances on classical guitar in Nashville and in Boston, and has also performed in master classes on guitar and mandolin. In the Boston area, he performs regularly on mandolin with the Providence (Rhode Island) Mandolin Orchestra.