Rees Featured on History Channel

Colorado State University Pueblo Professor of History Jonathan Rees appeared on the Aug.29 episode of the Machines that Built America on the History Channel.

The episode focused on household appliances. In his appearance on the show, Rees discussed the history and impact of refrigeration on daily life.

“When the History Channel decided to do a series on the Machines That Built America, there’s a household appliances episode, and they asked me to talk about refrigerators,” Rees said.

“It’s the top,” Rees continued. “If you can get on TV as a talking head, I always dreamed of that. I’ve been watching documentaries since I was a little kid. I won’t say it’s why I got into this, but it is the cherry on top.”

Rees authored a book entitled Refrigeration Nation: A History of Ice, Appliances, and Enterprise in America in 2013. The book received critical acclaim and landed Rees on the History Channel’s radar. He also published a book this past year in conjunction with Johns Hopkins University. This book entitled The Chemistry of Fear: Harvey Wiley's Fight for Pure Food was released in July.

“I started the Harvey Wiley book 10 years ago, so it means a lot to finally see it in print,” Rees said. “Harvey Wiley is the most important person in the American food supply who you have never heard of.”

A food historian, Rees has taught at CSU Pueblo for 22 years. Rees began his career researching the history of technology and found an interest refrigeration, which led him to the history of food.

Additionally, Rees has developed a fascination for the history of Pueblo. He was featured on a documentary about the 100-year anniversary of the 1921 Pueblo flood earlier this summer.

“I hope the fact that I’m on the History Channel draws attention to contributions that me and my colleagues make to not just the education of our students, but history in general,” Rees said. “Our department is proud of the teaching we do, but we are also proud of our research.”