Asian American History

“It is true, Maryland did not . . . contribute its proportion, but it was, in my opinion, the fault of the Government, and not of the people.”

~Benjamin Franklin

During the French and Indian War the American colonies contributed to the imperial war effort like never before, Maryland included. Maryland’s involvement in the war saw colonial governor Horatio Sharpe and the elected delegates of the Lower House in near constant struggle over Maryland’s role. They battled over the deployment of Maryland’s militia, over raising troops, and over wartime funding. Meanwhile, frontier settlements burned and Maryland’s soldiers joined the effort to defend Great Britain’s claims to lands west of the Appalachians. Britain’s colonies in North America expanded substantially as a result.

Local historian Tim Ware details the political as well as the military conflicts Maryland faced in this unique war.

In 1604, when Frenchmen landed on Saint Croix Island, they were far from the first people to walk along its shores.

For thousands of years, Etchemins—whose descendants were members of the Wabanaki Confederacy—had lived, loved and labored in Down East Maine. Bound together with neighboring people, all of whom relied heavily on canoes for transportation, trade and survival, each group still maintained its own unique cultures and customs. After the French arrived, they faced unspeakable hardships, from the Great Dying, when disease killed up to 90 percent of coastal populations, to centuries of discrimination. Yet they never abandoned Ketakamigwa, their homeland. In this book, anthropologist William Haviland relates the history of hardship and survival endured by the natives of the Down East coast and how they have maintained their way of life over the past four hundred years.

The Battle for North America

In the mid-1750s, New York was caught in the crossfire as the British and French struggled for control of North America. During the French and Indian War, the Adirondack Mountain region saw numerous military encounters around Lakes George and Champlain while Sir William Johnson, Robert Rogers, John Stark, Phineas Lyman, and others carved their names in the annals of American history. Powerful fortifications rose and fell as the English and the French brawled; forts such as Fort William Henry, Fort Ticonderoga, and Fort Saint-Frederic/Fort Crown Point housed troops, endured sieges, and received their own battle scars over the course of the war. Author Marie Danielle Annette Williams uncovers the complex history of the Adirondacks during its most tumultuous time.  

Arriving in Chicago in the mid 60s, the first wave of Indians were mostly professionals who intended to return home. But as they stayed on and were joined by others, their population began to reflect the tremendous ethnic, linguistic, and religious diversity of India. Today, Indians are the largest Asian-American immigrant group in the Chicago area.

Recognizing that first-hand resources would still be available for compiling their history, the Indo-American Center appealed to Chicago area residents of Indian origin and to their organizations to select photographs and documents from their personal collections to tell the story of the community. This book is a result of their enthusiastic response. Here, then, is a history in the making,-the record, in pictures, of the life of a diverse and vibrant community as told by the people who live it and shape its course.

Discover the ancient roots, cultures, legends, and enduring history of Louisiana’s Native peoples.

Indians of Louisiana traces the history of the first Native peoples who arrived in Louisiana more than 1,000 years ago, exploring their journeys, cultures, customs, and lasting influence on the region. Drawing on archaeological evidence and historical research, Fred B. Kniffen reconstructs the story of Louisiana’s earliest inhabitants and examines the development of their societies, traditions, and material culture.

The book also preserves Native legends and follows the history of Louisiana’s Indigenous peoples into more modern times, offering readers a broader view of their place in the state’s history. From archaeology and early settlement to traditions, beliefs, and cultural change, Indians of Louisiana provides an accessible introduction to the people and cultures that helped shape Louisiana’s past.

The history of the People of the Shore detailed in Shinnecock Indian Nation.

The Shinnecock have resided along the shores of eastern Long Island for more than 10,000 years. These hunter-gatherers were also skilled whalers who first tackled the Atlantic in their dugout canoes and later became highly regarded crew members on 19th-century whaling ships that sailed the globe. The Shinnecock were also noted wampum makers, using the northern quahog hard-shelled clam and whelk shells to craft some of the finest-quality wampum beads to be found anywhere along the eastern seaboard. Since the first tall ships sailed into the local waters in the 1500s, new settlers and shifty land deals have diminished the ancestral territory of the Shinnecock Indian Nation. Despite overwhelming odds, however, and in the midst of immense privilege and wealth of their Hamptons neighbors, the Shinnecock remain. They are a federally recognized tribe with more than 1,500 enrolled members and are governed by a seven-member council of trustees.

Discover a Lost Language

Originally published in 1666, written by John Eliot, a Puritan minister who went to America to escape religious persecution and found himself learning the native Massachusett language. Eliot eventually created a written language, articulating grammatical rules, and translated the bible into that native language. This is the grammar he created and is a landmark early American linguistic and historical publication.