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Chronological Reasoning and Causation

Indigenous Nations and the Geography of Land Dispossession: How does geography determine where and how people live?

  1. Load Map of the Onondaga Reservation, 1890 in Main Image Viewer
  2. Load Map of New York with Indian Reservation Locations, 1890 in Main Image Viewer
  3. Load Roemer Map, 1700 in Main Image Viewer
  4. Load Indian deed for Staten Island in Main Image Viewer
  5. Load Indian deed for Staten Island in Main Image Viewer
  6. Load Indian deed for Staten Island in Main Image Viewer
  7. Load Back Native American - Portion of Indian Deed dated May 29, 1757 in Main Image Viewer
  8. Load Map of the Present War in North America, 1757 in Main Image Viewer
  9. Load Map of the State of New York with its Counties as defined by statute, March 7, 1788 in Main Image Viewer
  10. Load Map of part of the State of New York with parts of the adjacent states, 1793-1794 in Main Image Viewer
  11. Load A map of the Oneida Reservation in 1810 in Main Image Viewer
  12. Load Woman with Basket and Bead Work. Onondaga Reservation, N.Y. in Main Image Viewer
  13. Load Woman and Children on Onondaga Reservation in Main Image Viewer

Suggested Teaching Instructions

Learning Standards and Practices
7.2 COLONIAL DEVELOPMENTS: European exploration of the New World resulted in various interactions with Native Americans and in colonization. The American colonies were established for a variety of reasons and developed differently based on economic, social, and geographic factors. Colonial America had a variety of social structures under which not all people were treated equally.

(Standards: 1, 2, 3, 4; Themes: MOV, GEO, ECO, TECH, EXCH)
7.2b Different European groups had varied interactions and relationships with the Native American societies they encountered. Native American societies suffered from loss of life due to disease and conflict and loss of land due to encroachment of European settlers and differing conceptions of property and land ownership.
Ø Students will compare and contrast British interactions with southern New England Algonquians, Dutch and French interactions with the Algonquians and Iroquoians, and Spanish interactions with Muscogee.
Ø Students will investigate other Native American societies found in their locality and their interactions with European groups.
Ø Students will examine the major reasons why Native American societies declined in population and lost land to the Europeans.
A. Gathering, Interpreting and Using Evidence
5. Make inferences and draw general conclusions from evidence.
D. Geographic Reasoning
6. Describe the spatial organization of place, considering the historical, social, political, and economic implication of that organization. Describe how boundaries and definition of location are historically constructed. 

 

Setting the Stage
Introduce students to an online map of their community like Google Maps. Hand out a map of their same community from the 1800s. Ask students to think about and discuss what would happen if everyone started using the map from the 1800s to make decisions about who could use the property in their community instead of using the modern map.