Participant Info

First Name
Kim
Last Name
Bender
Country
United States
State
DC District of Columbia
Affiliation
Heurich House Museum
Website URL
kimberlypbender.com
Keywords
Washington DC, District of Columbia, urban history, brewing, labor, immigration, land use, entrepreneurship
Availability
Media Contact
Additional Contact Information
PhD
other credentials

Personal Info

Photo
About Me

Kimberly Bender is a strategic and visionary cultural administrator, public historian, and attorney who amplifies under-represented voices and reinterprets established narratives. As the founding executive director of the Heurich House Museum for over ten years, she has transformed the 125-year-old historic home that once hosted tea parties into a vibrant and inclusive space that explores immigration and American Dream. She led the organization through the creation of its mission, vision, and strategic plan, and continues to significantly increase public reach and revenue. 

For the last four years, Kimberly has worked with architect and historian Neil Flanagan to research the unbuilt neighborhood of Belmont, Chevy Chase, MD, reinterpreting the origin story of one of the first exclusive suburbs by showing how the Chevy Chase Land Company shut down a viable venture by Black businessmen to build the first modern suburb for African Americans. Her other primary research project focuses on Myrtilla Miner, a white teacher and abolitionist who created an antebellum school for free African American girls. 

Kimberly received a B.A. in International Relations from Connecticut College with an Honors Certificate in International Studies, and a J.D. from Tulane Law School. In 2017, she was honored as one the Washington Business Journal’s 40 Under 40.

Recent Publications
Media Coverage
https://brightestyoungthings.com/articles/freshly-tapped-senate-beer, https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2018/12/05/you-can-finally-have-happy-hour-with-dc-original-hometown-brewery/,
Country Focus
United States
Expertise by Geography
United States
Expertise by Chronology
19th century, 20th century
Expertise by Topic
Law, Libraries & Archives, Material Culture, Museums, Urban History