Noah Petts
DPhil Student - Jesus College
Research Topic: Missionary Families in the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, 1701-c.1783
Supervisor: Katherine Paugh and Sarah Knott
My research examines missionary families in the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts between 1701 and c.1783. Drawing on histories of gender, religion, and empire in the British Atlantic world, I explore the experiences and contributions of families, including kin networks and households, to missionary work. My time period spans the start of the SPG's work up to the American Revolution and the religious convulsions in between. I am particularly interested in the interactions between missionary families and non-conformist colonists, indigenous people, and enslaved people, alongside the refashioning of families through their work. This study builds on my previous research into missionary masculinities and women benefactors to the SPG. My aim is to offer a new kind of history of the SPG, one that recognises the place of gender, women, children, and the personal in missionary work.
Publications
- "The Lives and Legacies of the British Gay Liberation Front Badge, 1970-2024." The Historical Journal 69, no. 1 (2026): 198-220. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0018246X25000093. (With Philippa Fletcher)
Prizes and Funding
- 2026- Hamish Scott Memorial Studentship, Jesus College (Full-funding for my DPhil)
- 2025-26 Christopher-Wykes Graduate Scholarship, Harris Manchester College (Full-funding for my MSt)
- 2025 Stevenson Prize, for the highest overall aggregate mark in the LSE International History Department
- 2025 James Joll Prize, for the highest mark in the dissertation in the LSE International History Department
Before coming to Jesus, I graduated in 2026 with a fully-funded MSt in History (Early Modern History, 1500-1700) from Harris Manchester College. Before that, I graduated in 2025 from the London School of Economics and Political Science with a BA in History (with French), ranking first in my cohort. During my undergraduate, I published a co-authored article on the badge of the British Gay Liberation Front in The Historical Journal, broadening my interests into material culture and oral history. Elsewhere, I am the Research Associate for the Blue Sustainability and Society Initiative, based at the LSE International History Department. Before university, I attended comprehensive state schools. Beyond academia, I am a sub-3h marathoner and occasional knitter.
