Andrés Reséndez Bücher

Since the time of Columbus, Indian slavery was illegal in much of the American continent. Yet Reséndez shows it was practiced for centuries as an open secret: there was no abolitionist movement to protect the tens of thousands of natives who were kidnapped and enslaved by the conquistadors, forced to work in the silver mines, or made to serve as domestics for Mormon settlers and rich Anglos. New evidence sheds light too on Indian enslavement of other Indians as Reséndez reveals nothing less than a key missing piece of American history

Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca was sent to claim for Spain a vast area of today's southern United States. Cabeza de Vaca ultimately wrote an extraordinary chronicle of his journey. This work conjoins the facts recounted by Cabeza with the author's own research in the history and culture of 16th century North America to describe this epic journey.

The history of colonial Texas begins with a shipwreck of a Spanish expedition led by Cabeza de Vaca along the Gulf Coast in 1527. Readers will learn why it took nearly 200 years to establish the first permanent settlement at San Antonio, how the Louisiana Purchase led to troubles between Spain and the United States, and how Texas became part of Mexico in 1821. They'll witness the land rush that brought settlers from Louisiana and Kentucky pouring into Texas and the battles at the Alamo and San Jacinto that made Texas an independent republic for nine years before it became the 28th state in 1845. Through the eyes of explorers, missionaries, Native Americans, government officials, and more, children gain a new perspective on colonial Texas.