The native peoples of the north American continent, often erroneously referred to as Indians.
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Why Californian Indian leader Estanislao was named after Polish martyr?
Researching for Polish people dealing with Indians during 19th century, I've found out about Estanislao, one of Yokuts' leaders, who led different groups of Californian Indian rebels against Mexican ...
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2answers
72 views
Early instances of bacteriological warfare
Via The Straight Dope, I came across this page which claims that Lord Jeffrey Amherst, commander-in-chief of the Brits in America seriously considered distributing blankets infected with small-pox to ...
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5answers
634 views
Did Native Americans ever fight the indigenous people living in Mexico before Europeans arrived?
From elementary school, my history teacher used to talk about the fighting between native American tribes. Then, later in the semester, we would briefly discuss the rise of Aztecs, Olmecs, Mayans, ...
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1answer
193 views
Why did civilisation/city states never take root in Australia and North America?
I recently read that the Australian Aborigines numbered close to a million during the time of Botany Bay and comprised of ~250 tribes/nations. The Native Americans of North America also boasted ...
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1answer
100 views
Did the US gov't pay the Cherokee for their lands in Georgia?
According to the Treaty of New Echota, ratified by the US Senate in 1836, the US government was supposed to pay the Cherokee Nation $5 million for their lands in and around Georgia. In exchange, the ...
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2answers
140 views
Did non-Indians go into Indian Territory (now Oklahoma)?
From 1854 to 1907 there was a territory reserved for American Indians (aptly named "Indian Territory") in what is now the state of Oklahoma.
How exclusive was this territory? Did non-Indians go ...
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1answer
114 views
Did American Indians disrupt railroads in their regions?
In the Old West, many railroads went through Indian-occupied areas. Are there any documented instances of the Indians ever sabotaging the railroads? Please provide dates and circumstances where ...
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1answer
105 views
Did Native Americans sabotage telegraph lines running through their territory?
In the 1800s in the Western US, there were a number of telegraph lines running through territory mostly inhabited by Indians. Did they ever sabotage the lines?
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281 views
New World Sickness
When Europeans came to the Americas, they brought with them "Old World diseases" that decimated the Native American population. There's a big list of them here. Were there any "New World" diseases ...
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3answers
71 views
Where can one study the movements of the natives of North America prior to European contact
I was curious to know what is currently the best source (or the best sources) for information about people indigenous to the Americas prior to European contact. I am especially interested in the area ...
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2answers
758 views
To what extent did Native American cultures develop metalworking for tools and weapons?
When Europeans started showing up in the New World, the native cultures were technologically far behind. Many still used stone tools: North American tribes used flint, while some Mesoamerican cultures ...
5
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1answer
84 views
What Land Runs were there in the U.S., and were the Indians paid for their land?
In 1893, the U.S. paid the Cherokees $8.5 million for the Cherokee Strip or Outlet for the land run that year.
Were Indians paid for land in the other Oklahoma land runs? Were there land runs in ...
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Why is Christopher Columbus credited for “discovering” America?
Even if we ignore the millions of native Americans who lived in the continent before Columbus "discovered" it, even if we ignore other civilizations (eg: Polynesians, Phoenicians, Chinese, Arabs, ...
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1answer
100 views
What historical evidence do we have regarding the Lost Colony of Roanoke?
In grade school, Americans are told a very basic story of Roanoke colony. A group of colonists arrive in the New World and establish the colony. The first American of English descent is born there: ...
5
votes
1answer
111 views
How is it that King Philips War devastated the colonists so much, but the Colonists were not driven out?
King Philips War, or Metacom's War if you will, was pretty devastating to the Northeast Colonies in the pre-United States - yet even after this the tribes that could have realized that the English and ...
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5answers
594 views
What are the factors that caused the new world civilizations to be less technologically advanced than the old world?
Assuming they started at the same point (maybe the split of the continents or the migration of the first "Native Americans" to the American continent), why did the Old World end up developing faster? ...
