John Monsky - Historian

John is the creator, writer, and narrator of the American History Unbound series. His reverence for historical ephemera is at the core of his productions, with his meticulous research of flags and other tangible objects driving his narratives that explore landmark events in our history. His lectures for the Carnegie Hall Presents series include: The Vietnam War: At Home and Abroad (2018), We Chose to Go to the Moon (2019), The Eyes of the World: From D-Day to VE Day (2021), and November 1918: The Great War & The Great Gatsby (2023). In 2019, John was honored by the New-York Historical Society, where he has developed and workshopped many of his lectures and serves as co-vice chair. He has appeared on CNN, CBS, NBC, and as an op-ed writer for The New York Times, providing historical perspective on current events. John serves on the board of directors of Rockefeller University and Yale University Art Gallery. The flag collection, which he began in his boyhood, is nationally recognized and has been reported on in The New Yorker, Art & Antiques Magazine, and other publications. His historical research on George Washington has been published by the Winterthur Portfolio. John graduated from Yale College as a history major, where he was awarded the White Prize in History and the Deforest Oratory Prize. After attending Harvard Law School and working as a law clerk, he served as an attorney for the U.S. Senate Congressional Committee investigating the Iran-Contra affair. John is a senior partner at Oak Hill Capital, an investment firm. In addition to being involved in the firm's corporate matters, he also founded the firm's environmental, social, and governance programs and developed its partnership with Ownership Works, a program that brings broad-based equity ownership to employees of private equity-owned companies. He lives in New York City with his wife, Jennifer Weis. They have four children—Harrison, Annabel, Gillian, and Caitlin—and dog Flyer.