University of Missouri-Rolla war historian Dr. John C. McManus has been
named to History News Network’s list of Top Young Historians.

Historians included on the list have made outstanding contributions to the
discipline in their area of research through their commitment and achievement
in scholarship and teaching. They are also highly regarded outside academia for
their expertise. All Top Young Historians are nominated and must undergo a
review process before selection.

McManus, an associate professor of history and political science, teaches
courses and writes books about military history.

“I am fascinated by ordinary Americans in extraordinary circumstances, and
no circumstance is more extraordinary than combat,” says McManus, who is a
prolific author on the subject.

“For those who have fought our wars, the least we can do is remember what
they did and understand something about what the experience was really like for
them,” McManus explains. “The focus of my teaching and research is to make
these realities come to life for the larger analytical purpose of bettering our
understanding of American history.”

McManus is the author of five books on U.S. military history: “Alamo in the
Ardennes,” “The Americans at Normandy: The Summer of 1944–The American War
from the Normandy Beaches to Falaise,” “The Americans at D-Day: The American
Experience at the Normandy Invasion,” “The Deadly Brotherhood: The American
Combat Soldier in World War II” and “Deadly Sky: The American Combat Airman in
World War II.” A sixth book is scheduled for publication this fall

McManus began his career at UMR as a history instructor in 2000 and was
named assistant professor in 2003. He was named associate professor in 2007. He
teaches courses on the Civil War, World War II, the Vietnam War, U.S. military
history and the modern American combat experience. He received the UMR history
and political science department’s first Faculty Excellence Award, and two
campus faculty excellence awards.