Written for students at the secondary level, this book details the historical development (10,000 B.C. to the present) of the 3 American Indian linguistic groups located in the 4 geographical areas of North Carolina (the Algonquians on the coast, the Iroquoians, including the Tuscarora on the coastal plain and the Cherokee in the mountains, and the Siouans in the Piedmont). Including illustrations, maps pinpointing the locations of each of the smaller tribes, and brief histories describing the fate of dispersed or extinct tribes, this book is divided into the following chapters: (1) "The Land and the People" (geographical setting, the prehistoric period, the historic period, and the linguistic families); (2) "The War Years" (early clashes and the Tuscarora, Yamassee, and Cherokee wars); (3) "The Many Tribes" (brief histories of 28 tribes); (4) "Daily Life" (appearance, housing and settlement patterns, artifacts, economy, social organization, and warfare and games); (5) "Spirits, Festivals, and Funerals" (creation myths, types of spirits, theory and treatment of disease, music, dances, the Huskanaw, harvest festivals, and midwinter festival); (6) "Today's North Carolina Indians" (Cherokees, Lumbees, Tuscaroras, Haliwas, Coharies, Waccamaw-Siouans, and the North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs). The book concludes with a discussion of the present-day Cherokee tourist business and the Lumbee's struggle for tribal recognition. (JC)