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American Indian Studies

This page is a starting point for all students researching American Indian issues. This guide is created by the Labriola National American Indian Data Center.

Article Databases

The following indexes and databases are accessed from the University Libraries home page by clicking on "Indexes" and entering the title of the database in the space provided. Useful searches include: "American Indian veterans," "native veterans," "world war American Indians," "Vietnam American Indians," "warrior society," "honor ceremony," and "Code Talker."

America History and Life is useful for searches of scholarly journals. Searches extend back to 1954. Indexes and Abstracts over 2,400 articles, bibliographic citations of reviews and dissertations on the history and culture of the USA and Canada from prehistoric times to the present time.

 

Archives USA is a current directory of 5,400 repositories and 124,400 collections of primary source material across the United States. Using ArchivesUSA, researchers are able to read descriptions of a repository's holdings to determine if a collection contains material useful to their work. Each collection record links to its corresponding repository record, simplifying the research process. Microfiche finding guides are available in the University Libraries.

 

Bibliography of Native North Americans covers the history, life and culture of native North Americans. Indexes works from the 16th century to the present, including monographs, essays, journal articles, government documents, historical and ethnographic books, and dissertations.

 

Ethnic Newswatch contains articles from a variety of native-oriented and tribally run newspapers such as Akwesasne Notes and Indian Country Today from 1989 until the present. Full-text of ethnic, minority and native press newspapers, magazines and journals. Provides a broad diversity of perspectives and viewpoints. Represents the diversity of the American population in ways that are not seen in the mainstream media.

 

Ingenta (formerly Uncover) Contains citations to articles taken from tables of contents of nearly 17,000 journal titles held by libraries throughout the United States. An online document delivery system enables user to request the complete text of articles for a fee.

 

Helpful Websites

In addition to the most important links listed below, there are a number of ever changing sites set up by veterans, veteran groups and warrior societies, and relatives and friends of native veterans. While valuable for describing how veteran service is viewed in individual and collective memory, the accuracy of such sites is open to debate, especially for interpretations of major events.

  • "Native Americans in the US Military," www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq61-1.htm This is a good place to start, with a broad overview of native veterans. It also has links on the Code Talkers.
  • "The People's Path Home Page-American and Canadian Indians in the Military," www.yvwiiusdinvnohii.net/military.htm This has perhaps the largest collection of links related to native veterans on the web and is regularly updated.

 

Navajo Code Talkers Association
Jean Whitehorse, Secretary
POB 20
Smith Lake, New Mexico, 87365
Telephone: (505) 786-7223

Objects

GI Joe Navajo Code Talker Doll, Pawtucket, RI, Hasbro Inc., 1999. Speaks seven Navajo phrases along with the English translation. Includes lists of words from the Navajo Code. LAB EPH IN-194.

 

Navajo Code Game, Title I Navajo Curriculum Development and Production Center, n.d. Intended for middle school children. Includes game pieces, map, worksheets, and teacher's edition. LAB LSM-52.

 

Ephemera

 

Included are small manuscripts, informational brochures, museum publications, photographs (including slides), radio transcripts, and poetry. Every possible topic is covered providing a great variety of material for research. To locate ephemera related to Native veterans and Code Talkers, search the American Indian Index and/or the Arizona and Southwestern Index, which is accessed from the Index tab on the ASU Library homepage. Type in searches such as "veterans," "world war," "Vietnam," "warrior society," "honor ceremony," and "Code Talker."

Books on Veterans

This bibliography lists both general works on native veterans as well as primary sources for research that are available in the University Libraries, Arizona State University, and the Labriola National American Indian Data Center in particular.

Nearly all general works on native veterans were written in the past ten years, part of a burgeoning interest in the topic. The main exceptions to that have been works on the Code Talkers. This bibliography does NOT include works on Indian scouts of the nineteenth century or Indian nations as allies fighting alongside the United States against other Indian nations. 

Books on Code Talkers

Reference Books

The following reference books in the Labriola Center contain articles on native veterans or aspects of their experience.

 

Included are small manuscripts, informational brochures, museum publications, photographs (including slides), radio transcripts, and poetry. Every possible topic is covered providing a great variety of material for research. To locate ephemera related to Native veterans and Code Talkers, search the American Indian Index and/or the Arizona and Southwestern Index, which is accessed from the Index tab on the ASU Library homepage. Type in searches such as "veterans," "world war," "Vietnam," "warrior society," "honor ceremony," and "Code Talker."

Audio and Video

Oral Histories

American Indian Oral History Collection, El Paso, TX: Southwest Micropublishing, 1990. Here are transcripts of oral histories held at the University of New Mexico in conjunction with the Center for Southwest Research on the Navajo and Pueblo Indians. A guidebook is available.

http://library.lib.asu.edu/record=b2643662

FILM 9642 r.1-11

 

Oral History Tapes of Ralph Cameron. On tape one, Ralph Cameron speaks about his World War II military exploits from childhood to leaving for Panama. On side two, he speaks about sailing to Panama and his arrival in the South Pacific.

http://knet/archives/?searchSPMI=ralph cameron oral history&dbpiece[]=amii&type=title

LAB LO-1

University of South Dakota Indian Oral History Collection, American Indian Research Project, Glen Rock, NJ: Microfilming Corporation of America, 1975. Part of the New York Times Oral History Program on microfilm. A collection of interviews with Plains Indians and those working with them. Some native veterans of the world wars discuss their experiences, including some Canadian military veterans. A guidebook is available.

http://library.lib.asu.edu/record=b1472136

FICHE 4x6 3004

The ASU Library acknowledges the twenty-three Native Nations that have inhabited this land for centuries. Arizona State University's four campuses are located in the Salt River Valley on ancestral territories of Indigenous peoples, including the Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) Indian Communities, whose care and keeping of these lands allows us to be here today. ASU Library acknowledges the sovereignty of these nations and seeks to foster an environment of success and possibility for Native American students and patrons. We are advocates for the incorporation of Indigenous knowledge systems and research methodologies within contemporary library practice. ASU Library welcomes members of the Akimel O’odham and Pee Posh, and all Native nations to the Library.