Includes bibliographical references (p. 255-264) and index.
Contents:
The Indians : coping with the Europeans and Americans -- The Spaniards : children of the sun -- The French : lords of rivers and lakes -- The British : from Rupert's Land to the Pacific -- The Russians : "soft gold"-the richest fur in the world -- The Americans : to all points West -- Epilogue : the six rivals, a summing-up -- Selected chronology, 1492-1804 -- The Lewis and Clark Expedition -- Mirrors of the trans-Mississippi West : George Catlin and Karl Bodmer -- The coming of the horse -- Firearms on the early frontiers -- Protecting northern New Spain from the Apaches -- A Spanish requerimiento -- The Treaty of San Ildefonso -- Coureurs de bois and voyageurs: the men and their boats.
Summary:
"Beginning with the 1528 shipwreck of Spanish conquistador Cabeza de Vaca and ending with the negotiation of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, this volume presents a broadly based general survey of the events that took place in the Trans-Mississippi West during the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries"--Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.