Description:
This is a sweeping survey of American Indian agriculture from its ancient origins to the present. It combines a wealth of historical, anthropological, legal, and economic information in a clear, readable synthesis.
Review Quotes:
"This is without doubt the most thorough and comprehensive treatment of American Indian agriculture in print. It is multidisciplinary and impressive both in scope and in depth. Hurt shows a deft hand in summarizing not only the literature on the evolution of agriculture in North America, but also the dismal failure of American Indian policy to build on earlier Native American achievements. This book is the starting point for any serious consideration of the literature on subjects ranging from the domestication of corn, to pre-contact irrigation, to current Indian water rights."--Richard White, author of It's Your Misfortune and None of My Own
"This extremely worthwhile work is a significant contribution to both Indian history and general American history."--Gilbert Fite, past president of the Agricultural History Society and the Western History Association.
"Merits the attention of all who are concerned about the past, present, and future of American Indians. The chapters devoted to the past century should be required reading for students of modern agricultural and American Indian history."--Peter Iverson, author of When Indians Became Cowboys: Native Peoples and Cattle Ranching in the American West