In his paper on “The
Significance of the Frontier in American History” Frederick Jackson Turner glorified the pioneers of the American West who claimed vast tracts of land as they crossed the frontier and decimated
the native population. Such was the power of Turner’s authority when he claimed
that the exploration of the American frontier had come to an end, and the life
of the American Indian had already passed away, many believed him. Patricia Limerick struggled with Turner’s
perceptions about frontier life, particularly his ideas about the
character of the West. She and others took exception to Turner’s
claims and proposed alternate views. “If the ‘frontier’ meant, in one
of its many and changeable definitions, the discovery of new resources and the
rush of population to exploit those resources, then 1890 was no deadline.” 1 She enumerated several characteristics of the
American West about which Turner seemed ignorant. Among them were the resilience
of the Native American peoples and their successful advocacy for the right to live
in their traditional ways; the historic presence of Spanish and Mexican settlers
preceding the arrival of the Europeans; and the significant influence of Asian
and Latin American immigration on the character and development of the American
West.2 The
human quest for truth and power is at the heart of historical study. Truth is power, but absolute truth is not
within the scope of mortal beings to grasp in its entirety. However, the search
for truth is not hopeless, nor is the desire for its power futile. Learning as much possible about our
environment and how our predecessors adapted to it has enabled thinking humans
to survive and thrive for hundreds of thousands of years. By investigating the uses and abuses of power
in the past, historians can make important contributions to the evolution of human
understanding.
1 Patricia Limerick, "What on Earth is the New Western History." Montana: The Magazine
of Western History, Vol. 40, no. 3, 1990, 62.
2 Patricia Limerick, "What on Earth is the New Western History," 62.
2 Patricia Limerick, "What on Earth is the New Western History," 62.
