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Indigenous Studies: Examining the History of Residential Schools in North America

History of residential schools in North America and their impact on Indigenous Peoples.

Gale Primary Sources: Understanding the History and Impact of North American Residential Schools

"We must teach them to think, feel, act, and work. We must form their whole character—all their religious, moral, intellectual, social and industrial habits. This is the work to be done."
The collections highlighted in this guide will shed light on the history of residential schools in North America and their impact on Indigenous Peoples through the lens of primary source documents and images. This guide will also highlight a number of eBooks and academic articles which can provide useful context to the primary source content examined. 

Photograph Gallery

Three unnamed boarding school students

Chiricahua Apaches, arrival at Carlisle, 1886

Chiricahua Apaches, after several months at Carlisle, 1886

Chemawa Residential School: Girl's Canning Club 

Six Nations Chief Mark Hill, at site of former Indigenous Residential School in Canada

Memorial at Kamloops Indian Residential School

Content Advisory

Some of the collections included in this LibGuide contain material representing the historical experience of indigenous peoples as authored by European settler communities, Christian religious organizations, government agencies, and non-indigenous scholars and scientists, as well as indigenous individuals and organizations. These resources utilize a variety of terms as applied to indigenous peoples and express attitudes that reflect ideas and prejudices at their point of creation. Some of these terms and attitudes will appear pejorative and expressive of ideas that are no longer regarded as acceptable, such as the outright elimination by assimilation or detribalization of Indigenous identities both individually and collectively. These materials are provided for academic research and teaching purposes. Gale's expert editorial staff includes this content in consultation with our source library partners and scholarly advisors and does not endorse any specific views contained within the content.