Library of Congress
Native American History
The history of America begins not with the first European explorers to visit the continent but with the American Indians who lived here long before the Europeans first sailed to North American shores. Understanding Native American history, including the cultures and customs of the various Indian tribes, is an essential part of understanding U.S. history.
Expand All Guide SectionsOverview of Native American History
These secondary sources offer a broad look at the history of Natives in North America.
Top Sites for Native American History
The University of Houston’s Digital History
outlines Native American history from prehistoric times to the 20th century. It provides first-hand accounts of Indians, explorers and government officials, as well as other primary source material organized chronologically.
Cultures in America
is an overview on Native American culture, including its beginning, languages, social customs and beliefs, written by Washington State University professor Thomas Hooker.
History.com
features a summary of Native American history from Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia.
Native American Exhibits and Collections
These Web sites offer collections of documents, photographs, artifacts and other primary source material with descriptions explaining their historical importance.
Top Sites for Native American Exhibits and Collections
The Smithsonian Institution
has a wide variety of Native American exhibitions and collections located in its American Indian Museum, American History Museum and Natural History Museum.
The Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s Alcoa Foundation Hall of American Indians
examines how Indian tribes interacted with the natural world through the study of four tribes located in different parts of the country.
The University of Washington Libraries’ American Indians of the Pacific Northwest Collection
contains photographs and government reports relating to Northwest tribes. It also feature essays written in the Pacific Northwest Quarterly and University of Washington publications.
The Native American Experience
is a collection of photographs compiled by California State University, Long Beach professor Troy Johnson, who explains the significance of each.
The American Native Press Archives
is a collection of writings by Native Americans from 1772 to the present. It includes secondary accounts and witness testimony of historical events, such as the Trail of Tears, as well as poetry and fiction writing,
Legal and Government Documents in Native American History
These archives provide the laws, treaties, executive orders and other documents that shaped the role of Indian tribes in the United States.
Top Sites for Legal and Government Documents
Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties
is a seven-volume collection of laws, treaties and executive orders regarding Native Americans between 1778 and 1970.
The Native American Constitution and Law Digitization Project
is a collection created by the University of Oklahoma Law Center and the National Indian Law Library (NILL) that includes Native American constitutions, tribal codes and other legal documents.
Yale Law School’s Avalon Project
includes texts of many famous treaties between Indian tribes and the U.S. government and statutes regarding Indians.
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