Regional History

Once upon a time, schoolchildren could be expected to know the name of the mountains separating France from Spain, the location of the Nile River, the capitals of all fifty states, and what and where the Pampas could be found. Now, even adults have a hard time naming the most populous city in the U.S. or the countries of Asia. These are, indeed, sad times, and doomed to become sadder if this geographic ignorance is not turned to knowledge.

Without a firm grasp on geography, how can we expect to know anything about history? History is rooted in a sense of place. Why did the Union troops lose the Battle of Cold Harbor? Because they were attacking Confederate fortifications uphill. And if you don't know anything about the Alps, the fact that Hannibal's army crossed them with elephants won't surprise you near as much as it should. Understanding the physical terrain and the demographics of an area are essential to understanding the history of that region.

Which is why studying history by place is such a good idea. There are cultural considerations, of course, and these can be immensely helpful guides in their own right, but simply looking at the lay of the land so to speak will provide a sense of context more abstract boundaries never can. African history, for instance, makes so much more sense if you know what the continent is like.

Even cultures are influenced by geography. Take the United States: some of the most important advances in transportation technology happened within her borders largely due to necessity. The steam engine train was perfected here, automobiles and airplanes were invented here, and in the last few decades we've led the world in space exploration.

It's not that no one traveled before the 19th and 20th century, or outside the North American continent—it's just that because the new nation was so vast, and there were so many natural barriers (the Mississippi River, the Grand Tetons and Great Smokey Mountains, the Mojave Desert), new forms of getting from here to there were not only a good idea, they were a necessity.

There probably isn't one instance in the history of the world in which geography and events weren't directly tied. Certainly this is true for military history, and exploration, and agriculture, but it's also true of ideas and ideologies. Part of the reason slavery was such an important part of Southern culture in the U.S. was that cotton was an immensely growable crop and only armies of slaves could be counted on to get all the work done; in order to justify the use of forced labor, however, a philosophical ethos was developed.

Other instances may be more obscure, but no less true. In France, the mild climate and fertile country led to a series of approaches to thought that emphasized experience and the pursuit of pleasure for its own sake (particularly existentialism); in ancient Greece, the geographical isolation enforced by mountains and seas allowed democratic polity to emerge among the city states.

Geography and history are pretty much Siamese twins, and academic technology has not advanced to the point where they can be separated without risk of life to both. We've organized the subcategories in this section along pretty standard lines (continents, countries, and the like), but standards arise because they work. Explore a region you're unfamiliar with; you're likely to uncover quite a few surprises.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur.  Read more of his reviews here.
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18 Penny Goose
An I Can Read Book Level 3
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Amazing Mind of Granville Woods
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And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?
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And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?
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Betsy Ross: Designer of our Flag
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Step Into Reading Level 3
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Buffalo Bill: Frontier Daredevil
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Christmas Around the World
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Civil War Paper Soldiers in Full Color
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Colonial Fashions - Paper Dolls
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Columbus and the Renaissance Explorers
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Concise Illustrated History of the American Revolution
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Crazy Horse: Young War Chief
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Crispus Attucks: Black Leader of Colonial Patriots
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Childhood of Famous Americans
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Childhood of Famous Americans
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Defenders, The
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Five Chinese Brothers
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George S. Paton: War Hero
Childhood of Famous Americans
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George Washington
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George Washington's Breakfast
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George Washington, Spymaster
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George Washington: Our First Leader
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Geronimo: Young Warrior
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Going West
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Gonna Sing My Head Off
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Grain of Rice
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Guide to Australia
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Harriet Tubman: Freedom's Trailblazer
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Harry Houdini: Master of Magic
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Hill of Fire
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by Thomas Lewis & Joan Sandin
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History of Mexico: An Introduction
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House on Walenska Street
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Hundred Penny Box
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Hundred Penny Box
by Sharon Bell Mathis
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Realistic Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
1976 Newbery Honor Book
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In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
by Bette Bao Lord
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Immigration for 2nd-6th grade
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In Their Own Words: Abraham Lincoln
In Their Own Words
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Jackie Robinson: Young Sports Trailblazer
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Jesse Owens: Young Record Breaker
Childhood of Famous Americans
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Jimmy Spoon and the Pony Express
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Josefina Story Quilt
An I Can Read Book Level 3
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Journey to America
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by Sonia Levitin
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Justin Morgan Had a Horse
by Marguerite Henry; illustrated by Wesley Dennis
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Realistic Animal Stories for 3rd-6th grade
1946 Newbery Honor Book
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Kidnapped Prince
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Les Miserables (adapted)
Stepping Stones: A Chapter Book
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Letter to Mrs. Roosevelt
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Letters from Rifka
by Karen Hesse
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Lights In Lisuland
CF4Kids Trail Blazers
by Irene Howat
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Lion to Guard Us
by Clyde Robert Bulla
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Little Farm in the Ozarks
Rocky Ridge Years Book 2
by Roger Lea MacBride
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Little House - Softcover Boxed Set
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
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Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-8th grade
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$79.91
Long Way to a New Land
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Joan Sandin
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Long Way Westward
An I Can Read Book Level 3
by Joan Sandin
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Mark Twain: Young Writer
Childhood of Famous Americans
by Mariam E. Mason
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Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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$7.99
Martin Luther King, Jr.: Young Man with a Dream
Childhood of Famous Americans
by Dharathula H. Millender
from Aladdin Paperbacks
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$7.99
Matchlock Gun
by Walter Edmonds
from PaperStar Books
Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
1942 Newbery Medal winner
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Meet Abraham Lincoln
Second Series Landmark / Step Up reprints
by Barbara Cary
from Random House
Biography for 1st-4th grade
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$4.99
Meet Christopher Columbus
Second Series Landmark / Step Up reprints
by James de Kay
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Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Meet George Washington
Second Series Landmark / Step Up reprints
by Joan Heilbroner
from Random House
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Meet George Washington
by Joan Heilbroner
First Scholastic Printing 2001 from Scholastic Inc.
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Molly Pitcher: Young Patriot
Childhood of Famous Americans
by Augusta Stevenson
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Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Molly's Pilgrim
A Bantam First Skylark
by Barbara Cohen, illustrated by Daniel Mark Duffy
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$2.00 (5 in stock)
Mr. Popper's Penguins
by Richard & Florence Atwater, illustrated by Jim Madsen
from Little, Brown & Company
Humorous Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
1939 Newbery Honor Book
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$8.99
Mr. Popper's Penguins
by Richard & Florence Atwater, illustrated by Robert Lawson
from Little, Brown & Company
Humorous Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
1939 Newbery Honor Book
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Mr. Revere and I
by Robert Lawson
from Little, Brown & Company
Humor/historical fiction for 2nd-5th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Mr. Revere and I
by Robert Lawson
from Little, Brown & Company
Humor/historical fiction for 2nd-5th grade
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On the Banks of Plum Creek
Little House Series #4
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1938 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
One Morning in Maine
by Robert McCloskey
from Puffin Books
Realistic Family Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1953 Caldecott Honor Book
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$8.99
One Thousand Paper Cranes
by Takayuki Ishii
2001 Printing from Laurel-Leaf Books
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$3.50 (1 in stock)
Paul Revere's Ride
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, illustrated by Ted Rand
from Puffin Books
American Poetry for 2nd-6th grade
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$8.99
Paul Revere: Boston Patriot
Childhood of Famous Americans
by Augusta Stevenson
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 3rd-6th grade
in Childhood of Famous Americans (Location: BIO-COFA)
$7.99
Philip Hall Likes Me, I Reckon Maybe.
by Bette Greene
from Puffin Books
for 3rd-5th grade
1975 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.99
Planet of Junior Brown
by Virginia Hamilton
from Aladdin Paperbacks
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in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Planet of Junior Brown
by Virginia Hamilton
Aladdin Paperbacks: May.2006 from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 3rd-5th grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
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$7.99
Pocahontas and the Strangers
by Clyde Robert Bulla
from Scholastic Inc.
Biographies for 3rd-5th grade
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Pocahontas: Young Peacemaker
Childhood of Famous Americans
by Leslie Gourse
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 3rd-6th grade
in Childhood of Famous Americans (Location: BIO-COFA)
$7.99
Pompeii
Step Into Reading Level 4
by Edith Kunhardt & Michael Eagle
from Random House
Non-Fiction for 2nd-3rd grade
in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP)
$4.99 $3.00 (2 in stock)
Prairie School
An I Can Read Book Level 4
by Avi
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-5th grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$4.99
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