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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572 Items found Print
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20th Century Wars
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Abe Lincoln Grows Up
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Heroes of History
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Abraham Lincoln's World
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Accidental Voyage
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Across America on an Emigrant Train
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Adopted by Indians
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Al Capone Does My Shirts
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America and Vietnam
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America's War Heroes
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American History in Verse
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Poetry for 3rd-Adult
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American Waterways: Canal Days
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Amistad Slave Revolt and American Abolition
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Amistad: A Long Road to Freedom
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And Now Miguel
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1954 Newbery Medal winner
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Anna and the King (adapted)
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Anne Frank: Beyond the Diary
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Anne Frank: Beyond the Diary
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Anne of Avonlea
Anne #2
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Anno's Journey
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Anpao
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1978 Newbery Honor Book
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Atlas of North American Exploration
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Oklahoma Paperbacks Ed from University of Oklahoma Press
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Attack in the Rye Grass
Trailblazer Series
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Augustus Caesar's World
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Non-fiction for 7th-10th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
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Australia - An Interdisciplinary Unit
by Merle Davenport
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Avion My Uncle Flew
by Cyrus Fisher, illustrated by Richard Floethe
from Purple House Press
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1947 Newbery Honor Book
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Aztecs
Journey Into Civilization
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Balloon Boy of San Francisco
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Battle of the Little Bighorn
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Beat the Story-Drum, Pum-Pum
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Beethoven Lives Upstairs
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Behind Enemy Lines
Sterling Point Books
by H.R. DeMallie
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Behind the Bedroom Wall
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Behind the Blue and Gray
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Benjamin Franklin
Heroes of History
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Between the Forest and the Hills
Bethlehem Books Adventure Library
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Humorous Fantasy for 7th-10th grade
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Beyond the Sacred Page
Book of Books #2
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Big Annie of Calumet
by Jerry Stanley
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Biography of James A. Garfield
Sons of Liberty Series
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Black Heroes of the American Revolution
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1992 Odyssey Classics edition from Clarion Books
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Blood on the River: James Town, 1607
by Elisa Carbone
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Blue Birds
by Caroline Starr Rose
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Bobby’s Friends
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Bold Journey
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Bold Journey
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Book of the Ancient Romans
by Dorothy Mills
2nd edition from Memoria Press
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Book of the Ancient Romans - Teacher Guide
by Dorothy Mills
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Boris
by Jaap Ter Haar
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Boston Jane
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Boy and the Samurai
by Erik Christian Haugaard
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Boy in the Alamo
by Margaret Cousins
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Boy in the Alamo
by Margaret Cousins
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Boy on the Wooden Box
by Leon Leyson
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Boy's War
by David Michell
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Boys in the Boat adapted for Young Readers
by Daniel James Brown, adapted by Gregory Mone
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Boys without Names
by Kashmira Sheth
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Boys' War
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Breaking Stalin's Nose
by Eugene Yelchin
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2012 Newbery Honor Book
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Bring Your Eyes and See
International Adventures
by Steve Goode, Mary Goode
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Bronze Bow
by Elizabeth George Speare
from Houghton Mifflin
Historical Fiction for 5th-9th grade
1962 Newbery Medal winner
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Buffalo Bill
by Helen Cody Wetmore
from University of Nebraska
Biography for 6th-9th grade
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Bull Run
by Paul Fleischman, David Frampton (Woodcuts)
2nd edition from Scholastic Inc.
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Calico Captive
by Elizabeth George Speare
from Houghton Mifflin
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Canada and the Canadian Provinces Map Coloring Book
by J. Bruce Jones
from CreateSpace
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Canadian Summer
Mitchells Series #2
by Hilda Van Stockum
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Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
by Jean Lee Latham
from Houghton Mifflin
Biography for 5th-9th grade
1956 Newbery Medal winner
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Carver and the Queen
by Emma C. Fox
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Chameleon, A Boy, and A Quest
from New Growth Press
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Children of the River
by Linda Crew
from Laurel-Leaf Books
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Children of the Wild West
by Russell Freedman
from Clarion Books
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$5.00 (3 in stock)
Children's Stories
Tales of the Wild West Volume 6
by Rick Steber
from Bonanza Publishing
for 4th-7th grade
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$2.50 (3 in stock)
China
by Diana Brianberg Grant, Diana Grant, Stanlee Brianberg
from Scholastic Press
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$4.50 (2 in stock)
Chu Ju's House
by Gloria Whelan
Reprint from HarperCollins
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City
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
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Civil War
by Janet Cassidy
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Civil War
by Pat Wesolowski
from Unknown Publisher
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Civil War for Kids
by Janis Herbert
from Chicago Review Press
Activity Guide for 4th-7th grade
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$16.95
Clara Barton
Heroes of History
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from Emerald Books
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Heroes of History (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
Claudette Colvin
by Philip Hoose
from Square Fish Publishing
for 6th-9th grade
2010 Newbery Honor Book, 2010 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book, National Book Award
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$7.50 (1 in stock)
Colonial Town: Williamsburg
by Bobbie Kalman
Revised from Crabtree Publishing
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Colonial Triangular Trade: An Economy Based on Human Misery
by Phyllis Raybin Emert, ed.
from History Compass
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$5.50 (1 in stock)
Colonist of Southwest Africa
The Louis Wessels Commando #5
by Lawrence Penning
from Inheritance Publications
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
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$11.95
Color the Pacific Northwest
by Zoe Keller
Clr Csm from Timber Press, Inc.
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$12.95
Come On, Seabiscuit!
by Ralph Moody
from University of Nebraska
Biography for 5th-9th grade
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Commodore Perry in the Land of the Shogun
by Rhoda Blumberg
from HarperCollins
Historical Non-Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1986 Newbery Honor Book
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$9.99 $7.00 (2 in stock)
Complete Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm
3rd edition from Bantam Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Folklore for 7th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$24.00
Coolies
by Yin, illustrated by Chris Soentpiet
from Puffin Books
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$7.99
Cowboys
Tales of the Wild West Volume 4
by Rick Steber
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Cowboys of the Wild West
by Russell Freedman
from Sandpiper Books
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Cowboys of the Wild West
by Russell Freedman
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Crispin: The End of Time
by Avi
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Cuban Missile Crisis
by Karl E. Valois
from History Compass
Historical Non-Fiction for 6th-9th grade
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Curious World of Calpurnia Tate
by Jacqueline Kelly
Reprint from Square Fish Publishing
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2010 Newbery Honor
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$7.99
Cut and Make African Masks in Full Color
by A.G. Smith & Josie Hazen
from Dover Publications
for 4th-10th grade
in Africa (Location: HISMC-AFR)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Czar, The
by Deborah Alcock
from Inheritance Publications
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in Inheritance Fiction (Location: FIC-WH03)
$19.95
D is for Doufu
by Maywan Shen Krach
for 3rd-7th grade
in China (Location: HISMC-CHI)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
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