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The Southeastern Indians
Drawing upon oral traditions, historical documents, and accounts by observers and scholars made over a four-hundred-year period, the author recaptures the culture, society, and history of the varied Indian peoples of the southeast.
573 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 1976
About the author
Charles M. Hudson
20 books7 followersCharles Melvin Hudson, Jr. (1932–2013) was the Franklin Professor of Anthropology and History Emeritus at the University of Georgia, and a leading authority on the history and culture of Native Americans in the Southeastern United States.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles...
Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles...
Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
December 19, 2021
Unforgetting Amnesia
I've owned this book for roughly 30 years. I'd read portions of it previously, but never cover-to-cover until now. Originally published by the University of Tennessee Press in 1975, The Southeastern Indians is academic in nature, with plenty of endnotes (unfortunately not footnotes; a forgivable offense given its publication date, which preceded modern word processing software; see rant here); numerous maps, photos, and illustrations; and an excellent bibliography. My copy is the 5th printing (1989).
Charles Hudson was a professor of anthropology and history at the University of Georgia for almost 40 years. He was regarded as one of the world's leading authorities on early Native American peoples. The author claims that "this book is meant to be a comprehensive introduction to the native people of the Southeastern United States" (vii), and at 572 pages, he appears to have succeeded on his claim. Hudson loves his subject, arguing that despite the fact that the Southeastern Indians "possessed the richest culture of any of the native people north of Mexico", they are "the victims of a virtual amnesia in our historical consciousness" (1).
Over eight chapters, Hudson traces the history of his subject from archaeological evidence to shortly before the time of the book's publication. The final chapter, "A Conquered People," is not written from the perspective of the dominant colonialist or invader, but rather from a point of view that is sympathetic to the plight that has befallen the indigenous tribes. I have benefitted greatly from finally reading this book in its entirety, and due to my newfound respect of its author, I am looking forward to reading his Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun: Hernando de Soto and the South's Ancient Chiefdoms".
March 3, 2024
Overall a pretty solid book. It details a lot about the history, society, and day to day life of Native Americans. It's obviously aimed at a more academic audience, so it can be dry and packed with information. However, it is fairly digestible for the non-anthropologist/historian considering they might not be the intended audience. One thing I was worried about was that it might contain some out of date views since it was originally published in the 70's, but I didn't find that to be the case. It is mostly factual and unbiased so it never feels like it's promoting an agenda, but when bits of the authors opinion do show through they feel reasonable, especially considering the book is almost 50 years old.
May 12, 2018
An excellent introduction to Southeastern Native American History and culture.
May 30, 2023
This was required reading for Dr. Hudson's 400 level course of the same title. This opened my eyes to the history of the Native Americans of the Southeast (and throughout the continents). Dr. Hudson was a tough but fair professor. Though the book isn't a tough read, as an anthropology student the details of that book seemed quite daunting. From understanding the use of fire lighters to the game Pelota, this book details the daily lives of the Southeastern Indians. Very much worth the read.
June 10, 2015
Very informative and interesting.
October 1, 2008
Good overview
September 6, 2012
old friend
July 5, 2015
Great as a study of the native inhabitants of the Southeastern US, especially prior to the 1750s. Speeds through the post-Revolution & Removal eras though.
January 24, 2016
Great introduction to the Southeastern cultures. It was my college textbook and helped to develop my fascination with the ancient Southeastern native people
July 26, 2019
An excellent book. Read it, you'll be embarrassed if you're an American and you weren't already embarrassed to be from this embarrassing shithole.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews