History 261
American Indian History
Fall 2006
Instructor: Dr. Michael Oberg
Meeting Times: MWF 10:30-11:20, Sturges 109
Office Hours: MWF 1130-12:20 Sturges 310
Telephone: 5730
E-mail: oberg@geneseo.edu
Required Readings:
Fergus Bordewich, Killing the White Man’s Indian, (1996)
Colin G. Calloway, ed., Our Hearts Fell to the Ground, (1996)
Gregory Evans Dowd, A Spirited Resistance, (1992)
Frederick Hoxie, ed., Talking Back to Civilization, (2001)
Calvin Luther Martin, The Way of the Human Being, (1999)
Michael Leroy Oberg, Uncas: First of the Mohegans, (2003)
Francis Paul Prucha, ed., Documents of United States Indian Policy, 3rd ed., (2000)
Selected Webites and Documents on the Web
Course Description:
This course surveys the history of Native Americans in the region that ultimately became the
United States. It traces the effects and consequences of the European “Invasion of America,” analyzes
changes in and among native cultures in response to the arrival of Europeans, as well as native responses,
resistance, and accommodation to European colonization. We will also examine the role of Native
Americans as players in the intercultural, imperial politics of the Colonial Period, their involvement in the
American Revolution, and their response to the westward expansion of Anglo-American settlement in the
decades after the American Revolution. We also will explore the historical background of the problems,
issues, and challenges facing Indians in contemporary American society.
Your grade for the course will be determined by your score on two examinations, a mid-term and a
comprehensive final, as well as on two short papers (See Below). The examinations will be based on the
readings and the materials we cover in class. A final component of your grade will be based on the quality
and quantity of your participation in our in-class discussions. You should come to class prepared to discuss
each day’s reading in detail. I reserve the right to give quizzes when I feel that the reading is not being
completed. The grading scale is as follows:
Mid Term Examination
Final Examination
Papers
Participation
25%
25%
20% each
10%
This course fulfills the requirements for both the Non-Western Traditions and History Core areas.
Therefore, students will demonstrate:
1.
An understanding of knowledge held outside of the Western tradition;
2.
An understanding of history, ideas, and critical issues pertaining to non-western societies;
3.
An understanding of significant social and economic issues pertaining to non-western
societies;
4.
An understanding of the symbolic world coded by and manifest in Non-western societies;
5.
An understanding of traditional and/or contemporary cultures of Latin America, Africa,
and/or Asia and the relationship of these to the modern world system;
6.
An ability to think globally.
Students will also demonstrate
1.
An acquaintance with the basic narrative of American history
2.
An acquaintance with the history of America’s evolving relationship with the rest of the
world; and,
3.
An acquaintance with the political, economic, and social history of the United States,
including themes of unity and diversity in American life.
Lecture/Discussion Schedule
August 28
Introduction to the Course
August 30
The State of Native America
Reading: Bordewich, Chapters 1-4
September 1
The State of Native America (continued)
Reading: Bordewich, Chapters 5-8
September 6
Survey of Precolumbian America and the Spanish Invasion.
Reading:
Internet: http://brown.edu/Facilities/John_Carter_Brown_Library/pages/ea_hmpg.html
(Use the Insight Browser, and once the screen opens, use the search feature and click on
the “indigenous” heading.
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5829
September 8
Eastern Woodland Culture
Reading: Dowd, Spirited Resistance, Intro, Chapter One; Oberg, Uncas, Intro, Chapter
One
September 11
Virginia Algonquians and English Settlement
Reading: Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5838
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6593
http://hnn.us/articles/19085.html
September 13
New England Algonquians and English Settlement, 1620-1678: The Story of Uncas
Reading: Oberg, Uncas, Chapters 2-7
Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5835
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6227
September 15
The Iroquois League and Confederacy: The Story of Hiawatha and Deganawidah
Reading: Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6375
September 18
The “Mourning Wars” of the Haudenosaunee
Reading: Review Dowd, Chapter One, dealing with warfare.
Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6594
September 20
Life Behind the Frontier: Eastern Indians as Colonized Peoples
Reading: Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5788
September 22
Native Americans and the European Wars for Empire
Reading: Dowd, Spirited Resistance, Chapter 2.
Internet: http://1704.deerfield.history.museum/ (Enter the site and explore thoroughly its
features
September 25
Native Americans and the Wars of the American Revolution: The Iroquois
Reading: Dowd, Spirited, Chapter 3; Calloway, “Oquaga” (ERES).
Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5710
September 27
Native Americans and the Wars of the American Revolution: The Stories of Old Tassel
and Dragging Canoe
Reading: Dowd, Spirited Resistance, Chapter 4
Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/7441
Hand Out Mid-Term Examinations
29 September
MID-TERM EXAMINATION!!
October 2
New York and the Iroquois in the New Nation: The Story of Black Cap and Good Peter
Reading: Prucha, Documents, document no. 1-4, 7-16
Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5790
October 4
Jeffersonian Philanthropy
Reading: Dowd, Spirited, Ch. 5-6; Prucha, Documents, document no. 17-21.
October 6
Nativist Response: Tecumseh and the Prophet
Reading: Dowd, Chapter 7; Prucha, Documents, no. 23-26, 28.
October 11
Nativist Response: The Red Stick Rising
Reading: Dowd, Spirited, Chapters 8-9.
October 13
Jacksonian Indian Policy and Indian Rights: The Story of John Ross and Elias Boudinot
Reading: Prucha, Documents, no. 27, 29-34, 36-38
October 16
The Removal Crisis
Reading: Prucha, Documents, nos. 35, 39-50
Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6598
October 18
Indian Societies After Removal
Reading: Prucha, Documents, no, 51.
October 20
How the West was Lost
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc nos. 52-63; Calloway, Hearts, Introduction, Ch 1-5
Internet: http://americanart.si.edu/collections/exhibits/catlin/highlights.html
October 23
Indian Affairs during the Civil War Years
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc nos. 64-66; Calloway, Hearts, Ch. 6-7
October 25
The Plains Wars: Background
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc no. 67
Internet: http://wintercounts.si.edu/index.html
(enter the site and study the wintercounts)
http://www/nmnh.si.edu/naa/kiowa/kiowa.htm
(enter the site and browse through the drawings)
October 27
Concentration: The Plains Wars, Phase I.
Reading: Prucha, Documents, docs nos. 68-75; Calloway, Hearts, Chapter 8-9
October 30
Enforcement: The Plains Wars, Phase II.
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc nos., 76-81, 83-85, 88; Calloway, Hearts, Ch. 10-11
November 1
Abandoning the Policy of Concentration
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc nos. 89, 92-96, 99
November 3
Indian Reservations
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc nos., 82, 97, 98, 101, 102, 124; Calloway, Hearts, Ch.
13-14; Hoxie, Talking Back, Introduction.
November 6
Reformers and the Indian
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc nos., 104
Internet: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/awards98/ienhtml/curthome.html
(browse through the site, examining Curtis’s photography
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/37
November 8
The Nation’s Wards
Reading: Calloway, Hearts, Ch 12; Prucha, Documents, doc nos. 105-112, 117-118,
120-123, 125-129, 132-134, 137; Hoxie, Talking Back, Ch. 1-3.
November 10
The Search for American Indian Identity
Reading: Hoxie, Talking Back, Ch. 4-6; .
November 13
The Indians’ New Deal: The Story of John Collier
Reading: Prucha, Documents, 136, 138-144; Hoxie, Talking Back, Afterword.
Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/76
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/34
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5058
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/26
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/33
November 15
Native Americans and World War II: The Story of Ira Hayes
Reading:
Internet: http://archives.gov/publications/prologue/2001/winter/navajo-code-talkers.html
November 17
Termination and Relocation
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc nos., 145-153
November 20
From Termination to Self-Determination
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc nos. 154-167, 169-172, 174, 177-190, 195
November 27
Red Power
Reading: Internet: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6897
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6904
November 29
Where are we Now? Native America in 2006.
Reading: Prucha, Documents, doc. nos. 196-206, 207-219, 221-238
For Discussion: Based on your reading of the final documents in the Prucha collection,
what are the current state of Native American relations with the United States. Go to the
website, indianz.com, and spend an hour or two reading through the headlines. What are
the big issues confronting Native Americans today?
December 1
Current Events
Reading: indianz.com
December 4
The State of Native America
Reading: Martin, Way of the Human Being, Chapters 1-4
December 6
The State of Native America
Reading: Martin, Way of the Human Being, Chapters, 5-8
December 8
Catch-Up Day.
December 11
Review
December 13
Final Examination Due: 8:00-11:00 AM
Assignments:
Short Papers: Write one essay from the list of topics in Part I, and one essay from the list of topics in Part
II. Your essays should be approximately five pages in length, typed and double-spaced, in 12-point type in
a standard style of font (like Times New Roman). Be sure to use evidence to support your reasoning. You
may cite and/or refer to other of the assigned readings in your paper. Please note that different topics have
different due dates.
Part I. (20% of your final grade): Write one essay on one of the following topics:
1.
Basing your essay on a close reading of Killing the White Man’s Indian, respond to the
following questions. What, in Bordewich’s view, is the nature of the Indian problem the United
States faces today? What, in his view, is its solution? You will need to read his conclusion closely
(Due on 11 September)
2.
Basing your essay on a close reading of Gregory Evans Dowd’s book, A Spirited
Resistance and Oberg’s Uncas, respond to the following: Describe the religious beliefs of the
Indian peoples discussed in these two books. In what ways was religion important to them?
(Due on 20 October)
3.
Thinking of the issues raised in the introduction of Uncas, What do you make of his
career as sachem. Is Uncas one of the founding fathers of early New England? In what ways did
he shape the region’s history? (Due 23 October)
Part II. (20% of your final grade): Write one essay on one of the following topics.
1.
Basing your essay on a close reading of the documents contained in Calloway’s Our
Hearts Fell to the Ground, answer the following question: In what ways did the lives of Plains
Indian people change between 1800 and 1900. In what ways did their lives display continuity and
resilience? (Due on 17 November).
2.
Basing your essay on a close reading of the documents contained in Frederick Hoxie’s
Talking Back to Civilization, consider the following questions. What role did American Indian
reformers from the Progressive Era see native peoples playing in the United States? What did they
want for Indians? What obstacles stood in their way? (Due on 20 November)
3.
Basing your essay on a close reading of Martin’s The Way of the Human Being, what do
you feel Martin wants? Does he offer a solution to the crisis he describes? What, in his view, is the
problem? How do we solve it? How realistic a solution does Martin offer? (Due on 8 December).