If you are citizen of an European Union member nation, you may not use this service unless you are at least 16 years old.

Week One: The First American West

This version was saved 12 years, 2 months ago View current version Page history

Saved by Frank Kelderman
on August 10, 2012 at 3:20:38 pm

September 4: Introduction to the Course

“The Savage Tomahawk,” November 24, 1812 (reprinted in The Columbian) *

“The Savage Allies of England,” August 3, 1812 (reprinted in The Independent Chronicle) *

“The War,” September 19, 1812 (reprinted in The American Mercury) *

David Thompson, History of the Late War Between Great Britain and the United States (1832)
Click on the images below for links to "The Death of Jane McCrea" (1804) by John Vanderlyn and the Jefferson-Hartley Map of the Territory east of the Mississippi River (ca. 1784). Click here for a more detailed image of the map, on page 34 of Peter Kastor's William Clark's World.

* Note: to scroll to the bottom of the newspaper articles, click and scroll at the same time.

Describe the civilizing mission of the United States and explain how this concept related to Thomas Jefferson's Indian Policy.
How did Americans in the early 19th century understand their relationship to Native peoples? Was there a place in the republic for Indian peoples? Base your answers on public policy and popular discourse in the early republic.
Explain the concept of taming the wilderness. How did this idea relate to America's western expansion?
What were the implications of American ideas about the wilderness and civilization for Indian peoples?
Why did American officials believe it to be important that the Native peoples of the Northwest Territory recognize and accept U.S. sovereignty? Based on the assigned texts how do you think Indian peoples understood the concept of sovereignty during the treaty negotiations at Greenville?

You don't have permission to comment on this page.