UNM Alum Molly Beer reclaims the story of Angelica Schuyler in new biography

University of New Mexico alumna Molly Beer is bringing new depth and historical clarity to a familiar Revolutionary War figure in her debut biography, Angelica.

Best known in popular culture as a romantic figure in the Broadway musical Hamilton, Angelica Schuyler Church is often reduced to a supporting role in America's founding narrative. Beer's meticulously researched biography challenges that portrayal, revealing a woman whose influence extended across political, social and diplomatic circles in the United States, Europe and the Caribbean.

"A musical is not bound by the rules of history-telling, or even nonfiction," Beer said. "No historian had ever done the work on Angelica Schuyler Church. She was always a secondary character in other people's stories, and a thorough account of her role was long overdue."

Published by W. W. Norton in 2025, Angelica has already earned praise from major publications. Library Journal called it "a compelling, richly contextualized portrait" that reframes Revolutionary War narratives through the lens of gender, class, race and power. The Wall Street Journal described Beer's portrayal as "confident, urbane and intelligent," while Kirkus Reviews praised the book as "a brisk and vivid history."

Reclaiming a voice from the margins of history

Beer's interest in Angelica Schuyler Church began early. She grew up on a farm in Angelica, New York, a town named for the Schuyler family, and encountered Church's story as a child. That early curiosity eventually grew into a decades-long research project.

"Growing up in a place that celebrated a female 'founder' directly impacted my own life," Beer said. "Stories are important. If we can't imagine a future, it's pretty hard to make it come to pass."

Through extensive archival research, Beer reconstructs Church's correspondence, relationships and political influence, situating her within broader transatlantic networks that shaped the Revolutionary era. Rather than centering romance, the biography highlights Church's intellectual life, diplomatic role and strategic social influence.

"Mapping out her life in the primary-source record, I found her constantly situated at the center of political affairs," Beer said. "It is almost uncanny how her lifeline threads together so many key people, places and events of the American Revolution."

From UNM to national recognition

Beer earned her Master of Fine Arts in creative nonfiction writing from the University of New Mexico, an experience she credits with shaping both her voice and her research ethic.

"At UNM, I studied nonfiction story craft, the ethics of nonfiction writing and biography," Beer said. "Those teachers continue to influence absolutely everything I write."

She also holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Duke University and a Master of Arts from Middlebury College's Bread Loaf School of English. Beer currently teaches writing at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

A timely story for Women's History Month and USA250

The release of Angelica coincides with renewed national conversations about whose stories are told in American history. As the country approaches the USA250 commemoration and continues to mark Women's History Month, Beer's work offers a timely reexamination of the roles women played in shaping the nation's founding.

"The story of the American Revolution is too often told as though six or seven men did the whole thing," Beer said. "The creation of the U.S. was a massive social and political movement that took not just generals, but women, children, servants, immigrants and people working behind the scenes."

By restoring complexity and agency to a woman long overshadowed by her male contemporaries, Angelica invites readers to reconsider familiar narratives and the broader networks of influence that helped shape the United States.

For more information about Beer and her works visit mollybeer.net