This encyclopedia, based on the latest research, unfolds in 1500 entries the entire colonial period, from the earliest settlements in 1600 through the American Revolution to nationhood under the Articles of Confederation in 1781. Its comprehensive scope includes standard topics like discoveries and battles; biographical entries on all the major colonial and revolutionary figures as well as lesser-known people from French and Spanish America, Russian explorers, colonial women, and importantIndian leaders; every major conflict, from the French and Indian Wars through Pontiac's Rebellion to the American victory at Yorktown; lengthy articles on each of the original thirteen colonies; separate entries for all of the major Indian tribes as well as for subjects like abortion and contraception, crime and punishment, disease, education, free blacks, Loyalists, medicine, piracy, race and racism, science, slavery, witchcraft, and much more.Special attention has been paid to new fields of study, such as the ethno-history of American Indians, women's history, and demography. Extensively cross-referenced, with over 100 illustrations and maps, this outstanding work also features sixteen Topic Guides that enable the readers to follow a trail from the general to the specific on subjects like Afro-Americans, the British Empire, Colonial Government, Exploration, the Frontier, Religion, and Women. Faragher's encyclopedia provides readers with a rich, accessible source of information and insight as engrossing as it is enlightening.