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Explanations
Bringing History to Life: The People in The Many Stories of 1704
by Freda Brackley
This essay explains how the 1704 website writers created the character
narratives that appear on the People menu. Some are based almost
entirely on a character's own words or historical documents that
flesh out the character's life. In other instances, where there
are few or no written records, we have fashioned "composite
narratives," based on historical, archaeological, traditional,
and linguistic evidence used to create plausible life stories.
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The following essays were written by historians to provide a wider historical context for the events, people and artifacts discussed in this web site. Click an essay's title to view it.
A
Brief History of Metacom's War
by Project Staff
Metacom's War (also known as King Philip's War) greatly impacted
the cultural landscape of New England for the Native Americans and
English, alike. This essay provides a brief overview of that conflict.
Captivity and Return
by Kevin Sweeney
This explanation describes the varied experiences of the Deerfield captives and explores the differing Native motivations and traditions of captivity taking, the efforts of French men and women to convert them to Catholicism and the efforts of New Englanders to secure their return.
English Colonization
by Kevin Sweeney
An exploration of the motivations of the English colonists who settled New England, this essay describes the social, political and religious institutions that they created and briefly characterizes their interactions with Native peoples.
English Puritanism
by Kevin Sweeney
After outlining the points of religious conflict in England, Dr. Sweeney examines how English settlers in New England practiced and experienced their brand of Protestantism.
Epidemics and Social Disorder
by Kevin Sweeney
This essay describes the introduction and spread of European diseases in the Northeast and explores the impact of these diseases on Native peoples of the Northeast.
European
Land Use and the Transformation of the Northeast
by Kevin
Sweeney
This explanation describes how French and English colonists took
possession of Native lands and explains how their ideas of land
ownership and their use of land transformed the region.
French
Catholicism
by Kevin
Sweeney
This essay contextualizes the religious struggles between Protestantism
and Catholicism in North America, and explores the relationship
between Catholic missionaries, colonial officials and the settlers
of New France.
French
Colonization
by Kevin
Sweeney
Examining the motivations of the French colonists who settled New
France, this essay describes the social, political and religious
institutions of the colony, and briefly characterizes their interactions
with Native peoples.
Native Diaspora and New Communities
by Kevin Sweeney
This explanation looks at the movements of Iroquoian and Algonkian peoples that led to the establishment of Native villages at Lorette, Odanak, Kahnawake, La Montagne and Sault-au-Récollet.
Native
Diaspora and New Communities: Algonkian & Wobanaki
by Marge
Bruchac
During the 17th century, Native nations began shifting alliances
and changing locations, as they coped with disease, inter-tribal
struggles, and international warfare. Eventually, new communities
formed among peoples living away from their original homelands.
Native
Land Use and Settlements in the Northeastern Woodlands
by Marge
Bruchac
This explanation discusses the different ways in which Algonkian
and Iroquoian peoples related to, lived on, and managed the natural
landscape over time, and assesses the impact of European colonization
on Native lifeways.
Schaghticoke
and Points North: Wôbanaki Resistance and Persistence
by Marge
Bruchac
Between the 1670s and 1760s, refugee villages like Schaghticoke
became crucial gathering places for Native people from the Connecticut
River Valley who formed lasting alliances with the northern Wôbanakiak.
Slavery
and the Slave Trade in Colonial New England
by Joanne
Pope Melish
This essay explains the origins and significance of slavery in colonial
New England and describes the work and culture of slaves within
a framework of shifting conditions of freedom and servitude for
Indians, Africans, and whites. It also places New England slavery
and the slave trade in the larger context of the Atlantic economy.
Who
Owns History?
by Barry
O'Connell
This explanation discusses the question of whether or not all accounts
of the past are prejudiced, equally partial by reasons of the blindnesses,
needs, or assumptions of their creators. It offers suggestions for
how teachers or students might evaluate the relative truth of one
account of the past, compared to another.
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