Library Guides: HIST 384: Native American History: General Resources

SU Libraries Primary Source Databases

American Indian Movement and Native American Radicalism This link opens in a new window
Formed in 1968, the American Indian Movement (AIM) expanded from its roots in Minnesota and broadened its political agenda to include a searching analysis of the nature of social injustice in America. These FBI files provide detailed information on the evolution of AIM as an organization of social protest and the development of Native American radicalism.
Mountain People: Life and Culture in Appalachia This link opens in a new window
This collection consists of the diaries, journals, and narratives of explorers, emigrants, military men, Native Americans, and travelers. In addition, there are accounts on the development of farming and mining communities, family histories, and folklore. These accounts provide a view of the of the vast region between Lexington, Kentucky and Winchester, Virginia, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Birmingham, Alabama, which spans three and a half centuries.
American Indian Correspondence: Presbyterian Historical Society Collection of Missionaries Letters This link opens in a new window
American Indian Correspondence is a collection of almost 14,000 letters written by those who served as Presbyterian missionaries to the American Indians during the years from 1833 to 1893.
Indigenous Histories and Cultures in North America This link opens in a new window
This database contains manuscripts, artwork and rare printed books dating from the earliest contact with European settlers right up to photographs and newspapers from the mid-twentieth century. Browse through a wide range of rare and original documents from treaties, speeches and diaries, to historic maps and travel journals.

Archives and Artifacts

Information about the archival collections at the Nabb Center--including the Local History Archives, University Archives, and Special Collections--can be searched, browsed, and requested through the Finding Aid Portal. Information about and photograph of the Nabb Center's artifact collections can be found in our Past Perfect Online page. Use these tools to discover connections within our collections and add to primary sources supporting your research.

Paul Buffalo

When Everybody Called Me Gabe-bines, "Forever-Flying-Bird": Teachings from Paul Buffalo
From the University of Minnesota Duluth, this memoir provides insight into the life of Paul Buffalo, an Ojibwe medicine man.
Interview with Paul Buffalo
This edition of Native Report visits United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck, North Dakota. Learn about the wisdom and ways of Paul Buffalo, an Ojibwe Medicine man; and learn how entrepreneur James Anderson overcame a speech disorder. Also hear from the Elders and learn something new about Indian Country this week on Native Report.

Reclaiming Native Truth

Reclaiming Native Truth is a national effort to foster cultural, social and policy change by empowering Native Americans to counter discrimination, invisibility and the dominant narratives that limit Native opportunity, access to justice, health and self-determination. Reclaiming Native Truth’s goal is to move hearts and minds toward greater respect, inclusion and social justice for Native Americans.

Internet Sources

Below are a sample of websites with primary sources that are available to the public online.

John Carter Brown Library

John Carter Brown Library "LUNA" database of Early American Images

National Museum of the American Indian

Exhibitions from the National Museum of the American Indian

Native American Heritage Month

Native American Heritage Month website

Indians of North America books

This excel spreadsheet lists the books in SU Libraries' catalog that have the subject term "Indians of North America." While it isn't comprehensive, it represents a significant majority of our Native American history books. Please note that the titles of books were cut off at 100 characters.

Use ctrl+F to search within the spreadsheet. When you find a book, either look it up in the catalog or reference the call number to find it on the shelf.

List of Native American books

Native Knowledge 360

Native Knowledge 360° (NK360°) provides educators and students with new perspectives on Native American history and cultures. Most Americans have only been exposed to part of the story, as told from a single perspective through the lenses of popular media and textbooks. NK360° provides educational materials, virtual student programs, and teacher training that incorporate Native narratives, more comprehensive histories, and accurate information to enlighten and inform teaching and learning about Native America.

Building on the ten themes of the National Council for the Social Studies' national curriculum standards, the NMAI's Essential Understandings reveal key concepts about the rich and diverse cultures, histories, and contemporary lives of Native Peoples.