Kinship networks were central to early Americans achievement of socio-economic and political goals. By comparing case studies of Chickasaw, Cherokee, and Anglo-American families, this dissertation shows how very important kinship was to early American life across cultures. The Colbert, Ward, Ridge, and Donelson families each used kinship relationships to pursue familial goals during the colonial and early republic periods. While these families all used kin-based strategies to achieve their goals, their aims differed drastically according to whether they were American Indians or Anglo-Americans. The Colbert, Ward, and Ridge families pursued trade-related goals in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, but focused more and more on preservation of sovereignty as pressure from Anglo-Americans to cede land increased. The Donelson family used their kin networks to invest in a variety of business ventures, but primarily in land speculation. This comparison of American Indian and Anglo-American familial strategies illustrates how kinship networks were used similarly to pursue conflicting goals. The continuous use of kin-based strategies by the leaders of these cultures indicates that family was an essential part of early American intercultural political and economic negotiation and should be recognized as a powerful force in American history.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VANDERBILT/oai:VANDERBILTETD:etd-08132010-072203 |
| Date | 13 August 2010 |
| Creators | Inman, Natalie Rishay |
| Contributors | Daniel H. Usner, Jr., Jane Landers, Joel F. Harrington, Dana Nelson |
| Publisher | VANDERBILT |
| Source Sets | Vanderbilt University Theses |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.library.vanderbilt.edu/available/etd-08132010-072203/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to Vanderbilt University or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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