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The country that they built: The dynamic and complex indigenous economies in North America before 1492

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  • Carlos, Ann M.

Abstract

The economic history of the United States is that of Europeans and their institutions. Indigenous nations are absent. This absence is due partly to lack of data but in large measure to a perception that Indigenous communities have contributed little to US growth. This paper argues that this erasure of Indigenous activity overestimates the contributions of European colonists and immigrants. Three case studies explore the economic complexity and social stratification across different nations/regions. Migrants to the Unites States did not come to an empty land but one with settled agriculture, complex production processes and extensive trade relations.

Suggested Citation

  • Carlos, Ann M., 2022. "The country that they built: The dynamic and complex indigenous economies in North America before 1492," QUCEH Working Paper Series 22-13, Queen's University Belfast, Queen's University Centre for Economic History.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:qucehw:202213
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wishart, David M., 1995. "Evidence of Surplus Production in the Cherokee Nation Prior to Removal," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 55(1), pages 120-138, March.
    2. Carlos, Ann M. & Lewis, Frank D., 2012. "Smallpox and Native American mortality: The 1780s epidemic in the Hudson Bay region," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 277-290.
    3. Melinda Miller, 2015. "Dawes Cards and Indian Census Data," Historical Methods: A Journal of Quantitative and Interdisciplinary History, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 48(4), pages 214-229, October.
    4. Carlson, Leonard A., 1978. "The Dawes Act and the Decline of Indian Farming," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 38(1), pages 274-276, March.
    5. William Doolittle, 2004. "Permanent vs. shifting cultivation in the Eastern Woodlands of North America prior to European contact," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 21(2), pages 181-189, June.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Indigenous economic history; North America;

    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • N31 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
    • N51 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
    • N91 - Economic History - - Regional and Urban History - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913

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