The arrival of Europeans to North America had a profound impact on Native Americans, the environment of the continent, and people and trade all over the world. Following the discovery of the island of Hispaniola by Columbus in 1492, European imperial powers such as Portugal, Spain, France, the Netherlands, and England colonized territories throughout the continent, claiming the ‘New World’ for their mother countries, devastating Native American populations, and enslaving African people and shipping them to the Americas. This course will cover the historical archaeology of North America, defined as the study of ‘Old World’ cultures, such as the imperialistic Europeans, and their colonization of the ‘New World.’ Historical archaeology studies material culture in combination with written documents to piece together a clearer and fuller understanding of our past than history or archaeology alone. Students of this course will learn how to interpret history based on archaeological evidence and written records, and learn how these can both conflict and complement each other in researching of the past.

Topics are open to student discretion but must be relevant in a direct way to the North American historical archaeology. Students are expected to center their research paper on a thesis or argument concerning some aspect of historical archaeology. These could be ideas discussed in class or of the student’s own choosing. Topics must be approved by the instructor by Week 5 (or earlier).

The paper must support the thesis argument with evidence from reliable academic sources, and include a full bibliography with correct formatting. Length is to be 5-7 pages single space text (not including title page, bibliography, etc.). The bibliography should include at least 4-5 academic sources, and should follow Historical Archaeology style guide. The paper should be in Times New Roman, 12pt font, 1-inch margins, and submitted electronically through Canvas.

If you worry that your writing is not at college-level, I suggest the following text to improve grammar, structure, and argument in English: Strunk, W. and E.B. White. 1999. The Elements of Style, 4th Edition. ISBN:9780205309023.

The university views class attendance and participation as an individual student responsibility (see Student Rule 7). Students will be evaluated based on presence in class and participation in class discussions. More than three unexcused absences will lead to a reduction in grade. Late arrivals to class may be counted as absences. Attendance and participation in this class is worth 5% of your grade.