North/Central America
Rights of Man
Thomas Paine (1737–1809) played a vital role in mobilizing American support for their own independence, and he leapt to support the French revolutionaries when Edmund Burke attacked.
Thomas Jefferson on the French Revolution
Although deeply sympathetic to the French in general and the revolutionary cause in particular, Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) deplored the excesses of violence that took place even before the implementation of the Reign of Terror.
Alexander Hamilton on the French Revolution
Alexander Hamilton (1755–1804) represented the Federalist Party perspective on events in France.
Puerto Rican Labor Movement and the 1940 Census
This particular census table describes the types of jobs done by men and women. It illustrates how roles are assigned on a gendered basis. After the Great Depression of 1929, the world economy was in crisis.
Little Women, "Amy's Valley of Humiliation"
Little Women is one of the most beloved works of American literature.
Little Women, “The Valley of the Shadow”
Little Women is one of the most beloved works of American literature.
The Phoenix Indian School, 1896
"Phoenix Indian School; Largest in the Southwest and Second Largest in the Country: Need of Military Garrisons in Arizona Grow Less as this School increases Its Influence Among the Nation's Wards -- Over One Hundred and Fifty Boys and Girls," read the headline of the New York Times article writte
Advice of an Aztec Mother to Her Daughter
Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagún recorded this text in the mid-16th century as part of an effort to gather information about native Aztec history and customs. Sahagún went to Mexico in 1529 as one of the first missionaries assigned to the newly conquered territory of New Spain.
Charlotte Temple: A Tale of Truth
Charlotte Temple: A Tale of Truth, published in 1791, was the first American bestseller. The author, Susanna Haswell Rowson, was born in England circa 1762, and died in 1824 in Massachusetts, where she spent most of her life.
A Narrative of the Life of Mrs. Mary Jemison
In 1753, 15 year old Mary Jemison was captured by Indians along the Pennsylvania frontier during the Seven Years' War between the French, English, and Indian peoples of North America.