Commendation

Through exhibitions, scholarship, and public outreach, Dr. Claire Jerry has given the public countless new ways to explore the history of the federal government.

As a curator at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, Jerry stewarded the museum's signature exhibition on the history of the United States' highest office, The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden. Within the museum's Political History division, Jerry led projects to catalog and increase access to the museum's vast collection of political campaign materials. She also worked tirelessly to expand the collection into the 21st century, traveling to document the evolution of the nation's politics at political rallies and party conventions across the country. Working alongside the museum's education and communications departments, Jerry made the history of American politics a cornerstone of the museum's public outreach.

Claire Jerry retired from the Smithsonian in 2026, and this year's Trask Award honors her many years of dedicated service as a public historian.

Biography

Claire Jerry, National Museum of American History, retired

Claire Jerry has recently retired from her position as a curator in the Division of Political History at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History where she was project director for the exhibit The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden, was team lead for the 2020 digital campaign #votehistory, and was active in the museum’s contemporary presidential campaign collecting. Jerry’s research focuses on political rhetoric, the material culture of 20th- and 21st-century campaigning, and the history of the presidency.  Prior to coming to the Smithsonian, Jerry held several museum and academic appointments including Chief Curator at McKissick Museum, Curator of the Paul Findley Congressional Office Museum, Guest Curator at the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum, and Chair of the Department of History at MacMurray College.  She holds a B.A. from Butler University, an M.A. from Miami University, an M.A. from the University of Illinois Springfield, and a Ph.D. from the University of Kansas.