1877 Mid 1 study

Three Sisters

• Who/What: Corn, beans, and squash — grown together in Indigenous agriculture.
  
  

• Where: North America (especially Eastern Woodlands).
  
  

• When: Pre-contact era to present.
  
  

Why/Significance: Supported large, stable Indigenous populations and symbolized ecological balance; demonstrates advanced Indigenous farming systems before European contact.

Manitou

• Who/What: Algonquian spiritual concept — a life force/spirit present in all things.
  
  

• Where: Northeast North America.
  
  

• When: Pre-contact and continuing today.
  
  

• Why: Shows Indigenous worldviews valuing balance and interconnectedness — contrasts sharply with European Christianity.
  
  

Mansa Musa

• Who/What: Ruler of the Mali Empire; famed for his wealth and pilgrimage to Mecca.
  
  

• Where: West Africa.
  
  

• When: Early 1300s.
  
  

• Why: Symbol of Africa’s pre-European wealth and global connections — counters stereotypes of Africa as “primitive” before colonization.
  
  

University of Timbuktu

• Who/What: Center of Islamic scholarship and trade.
  
  

• Where: Timbuktu, Mali.
  
  

• When: 13th–16th centuries.
  
  

• Why: Demonstrates Africa’s intellectual and cultural sophistication before European contact.
  
  

Malinalli (La Malinche)

• Who/What: Indigenous woman who served as translator and intermediary for Hernán Cortés.
  
  

• Where: Mesoamerica (Mexico).
  
  

• When: Early 1500s.
  
  

• Why: Symbol of both collaboration and coercion in the conquest of the Aztec Empire; represents Indigenous women's complex roles in colonial encounters.
  
  

Columbian Exchange

• Who/What: Transfer of plants, animals, diseases, and people between the Old and New Worlds.
  
  

• Where: Across the Atlantic.
  
  

• When: After 1492.
  
  

• Why: Transformed global populations, diets, and ecologies — foundational to early globalization and colonial expansion.
  
  

Encomienda

• Who/What: Spanish labor system granting colonists authority over Indigenous labor and tribute.
  
  

• Where: Spanish America.
  
  

• When: 1500s–1600s.
  
  

• Why: Early model of coerced labor and exploitation in the Americas — laid groundwork for slavery systems.
  
  

Indentured Servitude

• Who/What: Contract labor system; individuals worked for years in exchange for passage to the colonies.
  
  

• Where: British North America, especially Chesapeake region.
  
  

• When: 1600s–1700s.
  
  

Why: Major early labor source before slavery became dominant; shaped class tensions and colonial hierarchies.

Chattel Slavery

• Who/What: System treating enslaved Africans as property for life and inheritable status.
  
  

• Where: European colonies across the Americas.
  
  

• When: 1600s–1800s.
  
  

• Why: Created racialized slavery; economic foundation of plantation systems and enduring racial inequality.
  
  

“Trampuse, branded on the right Shoulder TW...”

• Who/What: A description of an enslaved person’s physical branding (often found in ads or records).
  
  

Why: Reveals the brutality and dehumanization inherent in chattel slavery.

Richard Frethorne

• Who/What: Indentured servant in Virginia; wrote a letter describing his suffering.
  
  

• When: 1620s.
  
  

Why: Firsthand account of harsh realities for indentured servants — humanizes class struggles in early colonies.

“Stopped her mouth with a handkerchief...and ravished her”

• Who/What: Description from a colonial legal record of sexual violence (often against enslaved or servant women).
  
  

Why: Highlights gendered and racialized violence as a tool of domination in early America.

Metacom’s Rebellion (King Philip’s War)

• Who/What: War between New England colonists and Wampanoag-led coalition under Metacom (King Philip).
  
  

• Where: New England.
  
  

• When: 1675–1676.
  
  

Why: One of the deadliest conflicts in colonial America; devastated Native populations and ended major Indigenous resistance in New England.

Pueblo Revolt (Popé’s Rebellion)

• Who/What: Uprising of Pueblo peoples against Spanish rule and forced conversions.
  
  

• Where: New Mexico.
  
  

• When: 1680.
  
  

Why: Most successful Indigenous revolt in North America; temporarily drove Spanish from the region.

Bacon’s Rebellion

• Who/What: Armed rebellion led by Nathaniel Bacon against Virginia’s colonial government.
  
  

• Where: Virginia.
  
  

• When: 1676.
  
  

Why: Exposed class tensions between frontier settlers and elites; led to expansion of racial slavery as a way to control poor whites and Africans.

Stono Rebellion

• Who/What: Slave rebellion led by enslaved Africans in South Carolina.
  
  

• When: 1739.
  
  

• Why: One of the largest slave uprisings in British America; led to stricter slave codes and harsher control.
  
  

Mary Jemison

• Who/What: Captured by Seneca during the French & Indian War; lived the rest of her life with them.
  
  

• Why: Example of cultural blending and Indigenous adoption; challenges binary views of “civilized vs. savage.”
  
  

Pontiac’s Rebellion

• Who/What: Indigenous uprising against British forts after French and Indian War, led by Ottawa leader Pontiac.
  
  

• When: 1763–1766.
  
  

Why: Resistance to British encroachment; led to Proclamation Line of 1763 restricting colonial expansion westward.

Proclamation Line of 1763

• Who/What: British decree forbidding settlement west of the Appalachians.
  
  

• Why: Attempt to stabilize relations with Native nations; angered colonists and contributed to revolutionary sentiment.
  
  

Grand Settlement (1701)

• Who/What: Iroquois peace treaties with Britain and France.
  
  

• Where: New York and Canada.
  
  

Why: Balanced diplomacy between empires; preserved Iroquois autonomy for decades.

Albany Conference

• Who/What: Colonial meeting to plan defense and negotiate with Iroquois; proposed Albany Plan of Union (Ben Franklin).
  
  

• When: 1754.
  
  

• Why: Early attempt at colonial unity; model for later federal systems.
  
  

Treaty of Paris (1763)

• Who/What: Ended French and Indian War.
  
  

• Why: France ceded Canada to Britain; reshaped North American power balance, setting the stage for colonial unrest.
  
  

Treaty of Fontainebleau (1762)

• Who/What: Secret treaty transferring Louisiana from France to Spain.
  
  

Why: Strategic move before France’s defeat; later influenced U.S. expansion.

Great Awakening

• Who/What: Series of Protestant revival movements emphasizing emotional religion and individual salvation.
  
  

• When: 1730s–1740s.
  
  

Why: Challenged established churches; promoted egalitarian ideas that fed revolutionary thinking.

Elizabeth Ashbridge

• Who/What: Quaker convert and former indentured servant who wrote a spiritual autobiography.
  
  

• Why: Offers insight into women’s religious experiences and agency in colonial America.
  
  

“[He] confessed the benefit of correction…”

• Who/What: Phrase from a colonial record showing acceptance of punishment (possibly in religious or legal contexts).
  
  

Why: Reflects Puritan ideas of moral discipline and social order.

“Best Poor Man’s Country”

• Who/What: Nickname for Pennsylvania (coined by historian James Lemon).
  
  

Why: Known for its relative equality, religious tolerance, and opportunity — especially for European immigrants.

Vast Early America

• What: A modern scholarly framework emphasizing the global, interconnected nature of early American history beyond the 13 colonies.
  
  

• Why: Expands understanding of “America” to include Indigenous, African, and global contexts.