Native Heritage

Acclaimed historians Robert M. Utley and Wilcomb E. Washburn examine both small battles and major wars - from the Native rebellion of 1492 to Crazy Horse and the Sioux War to the massacre at Wounded Knee.

Examining the legacy of racial mixing in Indian Territory through the land and lives of two families, one of Cherokee Freedman descent and one of Muscogee Creek heritage, Darnella Davis' memoir writes a new chapter in the history of racial mixing on the frontier. It is the only book-length account of the intersections between the three races in Indian Territory and Oklahoma written from the perspective of a tribal person and a freedman.

As the armed conflicts between the English colonies in North America and the French settlements raged in the 1700s, a young Puritan girl, Eunice Williams, is kidnapped by Mohawk people and taken to Canada. She is adopted into a new family, a new culture, and a new set of traditions that will define her life. As Eunice spends her days learning the Mohawk language and the roles of women and girls in the community, she gains a deeper understanding of her Mohawk family.

Young listeners learn about the early traditions which have led to our present-day celebration of Thanksgiving.

You may know of Pocahontas, but there is more to her story. Learn about life in the time that Pocahontas lived, and how she impacted the First Colonies.

Chief Joseph wanted peace for his people. But the US Army had different ideas. As the headman and spokesperson for the Nez Perce, Chief Joseph tried to do what was best for his people. Join him as he leads his people over vast plains and rugged mountains on the run from the US Army.

You may know of many Native American tribes, but there is more to their story. Learn about life in the time that the First Americans lived.

The compelling account of how two heritages united in their struggle to gain freedom and equality in America. The first paths to freedom taken by runaway slaves led to Native American villages. There, black men and women found acceptance and friendship among our country's original inhabitants. Though they seldom appear in textbooks and movies, the children of Native and African American marriages helped shape the early days of the fur trade, added a new dimension to frontier diplomacy, and made a daring contribution to the fight for American liberty.

Alexandra Ziolkowska-Boehm's "Open Wounds: A Native American Heritage" was inspired by her great uncle, sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski,who in response to the Lakota Sioux Indian Chief Henry Standing Bear's request "tell my story in stone", decided to sculpt Sioux Chief Crazy Horse from a mountain in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Ziolkowska-Boehm explores the real story of Crazy Horse, as well as the real story of the American Indians. She discovers the incredible role Indians played in the World Wars, and she also learns that Indians and their languages and customs are unique to each tribe.

Whenever young Carol sang along to her family’s music, her heart felt light and full of joy. Learning from her great-grandfather, Moshum, Carol listened closely to the drums’ heartbeat until one day, Moshum made her a drum of her very own.

Unapologetically punk, the essays in Thunder Song segue from the miraculous to the mundane, from the spiritual to the physical, as they examine the role of art—in particular music—and community in helping a new generation of indigenous people claim the strength of their heritage while defining their own path in the contemporary world.

Before the outsider, now Chief Heads Off, brought the Elk Dogs (horses) to the People, their strategy had always been to flee or hide from their mortal enemies, the Head Splitters. Now the People live in peace, but the young warriors long for war.

When North and South met in 1865 at Appomattox Court House to end the Civil War, the official terms of surrender weren’t written in the hand of Ulysses S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, or any white soldier. Instead, this momentous event was recorded by General Ely S. Parker, a member of the Seneca (Iroquois) tribe. At that time, Parker was not only the highest-ranking Native American in the Union Army but also the Grand Sachem, or chief representative, of the Haudenosaunee—the powerful Iroquois Confederacy.

Anxious to be given a name as strong and brave as that of his father, a proud Lakota Sioux grows into manhood, acting with careful deliberation, determination, and bravery, which eventually earned him his proud new name: Sitting Bull.

Growing up impoverished and shuttled between different households, it seemed life was bound to take a certain path for Eddie Chuculate. Despite the challenges he faced, his upbringing was rich with love and bountiful lessons from his Creek and Cherokee heritage, deep-rooted traditions he embraced even as he learned to live within the culture of white, small-town America that dominated his migratory childhood.

At four years old, Ria Thundercloud was brought into the powwow circle, ready to dance in the special jingle dress her mother made for her. As she grew up, she danced with her brothers all over Indian country. Then Ria learned more styles—tap, jazz, ballet—but still loved the expressiveness of Indigenous dance. And despite feeling different as one of the only Native American kids in her school, she always knew she could turn to dance to cheer herself up.