Native American History

Music and Song in Native North America

November 30, 2022 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

What was music like in Early America? How did different early Americans — Native Americans, African Americans, and White Americans — integrate and use music in their daily lives? This episode of Ben Franklin’s World is the first of a 5-episode series about music in Early America.

The exploration begins with music in Native America. Chad Hamill, an ethnomusicologist who studies Native American and Indigenous music, guides Liz through Native North America’s musical landscapes before European colonization. [Read more…] about Music and Song in Native North America

1,500 Artifacts Returned To Oneida Indian Nation By Museum

November 12, 2022 by Editorial Staff 2 Comments

More than 1,520 funerary objects and cultural artifacts were returned to the Oneida Indian Nation from the collections of Colgate University’s Longyear Museum of Anthropology on November 9th.

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act requires federally funded institutions to return remains and cultural items. [Read more…] about 1,500 Artifacts Returned To Oneida Indian Nation By Museum

Rensselaerswyck, Beverwyck & Schenectady: The Stuyvesant, Van Rensselaer and Van Slichtenhorst Conflict

December 5, 2021 by Peter Hess 2 Comments

In spite of his involvement and investment, Kiliaen Van Rensselaer never visited his new patroonship Rensselaerswyck; it was managed by his agent, and cousin, Arendt van Curler, commissioner general of the colony of New Netherland.

The second patroon, Johannes Van Rensselaer (1625–1662) succeeded his father after his father’s death in 1643 but also never came to America. He governed through an agent, Brant van Slichtenhorst. [Read more…] about Rensselaerswyck, Beverwyck & Schenectady: The Stuyvesant, Van Rensselaer and Van Slichtenhorst Conflict

Dutch, Mohawk & Mohican Fur Trade

November 29, 2021 by Peter Hess 1 Comment

After a 1627 conflict, when the Dutch sided with the Mahicans against the Mohawks, the relationship between the first settlers and the Indigenous People was relatively peaceful and cooperative.

This was due in part to the fact that the Patroon had purchased the land from them and also due to the business relationship established between local Indigenous People and the fur traders. [Read more…] about Dutch, Mohawk & Mohican Fur Trade

2022 NYS Museums Conference Call for Proposals

November 16, 2021 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

The Museum Association of New York has announced a call for proposals for their 2022 NYS Museums Conference, “Envisioning Our Museums for the Seventh Generation,” set for April 9th through 12th, 2022, in Corning, NY. [Read more…] about 2022 NYS Museums Conference Call for Proposals

Native Americans in Early American Cities

November 3, 2021 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

Have you ever considered early American cities as places where Native Americans lived, worked, and visited?

Native Americans often visited early American cities and port towns, especially the towns and cities that dotted the Atlantic seaboard of British North America.

In this episode of Ben Franklin’s World: A Podcast About Early American History, Colin Calloway, an award-winning historian and a Professor History and Native American Studies at Dartmouth College, joins us to investigate Native American experiences in early American cities with details from his book, The Chiefs Now In This City: Indians and the Urban Frontier in Early America (Oxford University Press, 2021). [Read more…] about Native Americans in Early American Cities

A New Guide To History Hikes In Eastern New York and Western Mass

October 23, 2021 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

Book purchases made through this link support New York Almanack’s mission to report new publications relevant to New York State.

The new book Paths to the Past: History Hikes through the Hudson River Valley, Catskills, Berkshires, Taconics, Saratoga & Capital Region (Black Dome Press, 2021) by Russell Dunn & Barbara Delaney, with foreword by Mark King, Executive Director, Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy, looks at thirty-one guided hikes and walks that explore the rich variety of landscapes in eastern upstate New York that offer still-visible evidence of the area’s history from prehistoric Native American settlements to abandoned 20th-century industries. [Read more…] about A New Guide To History Hikes In Eastern New York and Western Mass

The Blackfeet: A History Podcast

September 8, 2021 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

To understand the early American history of North America, we need to investigate and understand North America as an Indigenous space. A place where Native American populations, politics, religion, and trade networks prevailed for centuries before and after the arrival of Europeans and enslaved Africans. [Read more…] about The Blackfeet: A History Podcast

General Peter Gansevoort’s Map

June 19, 2021 by Bill Orzell 2 Comments

A sculpture of Brigadier General Peter Gansevoort stands in a city park named in his honor at Rome, Oneida County, NY. This bronze, dedicated November 8, 1906, was created by Emilio F. Piatti. It presents the General in dress uniform grasping his sword and holding what is perhaps one of the most impactful tools (or weapons) ever devised – an accurate map. [Read more…] about General Peter Gansevoort’s Map

Red Jacket Peace Medal Returned to Seneca Nation by Buffalo Museum

May 9, 2021 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

The Red Jacket Peace Medal, an object of cultural patrimony under federal law, has been returned to the Seneca Nation by The Buffalo History Museum.

The medal, considered to be of central importance by many in the Nation, was gifted to Seneca Chief Red Jacket by President George Washington in 1792 to commemorate discussions that culminated in the Treaty of Canandaigua of 1794, in which the Seneca Nation played a crucial role. The medal was meant to be a symbol of peace, friendship, and enduring relationships among the United States and the Six Nations. [Read more…] about Red Jacket Peace Medal Returned to Seneca Nation by Buffalo Museum