Lesson 8 · 15 min
This lesson explains who lived in America first, why colonists came from Europe, and how Africans were taken to America and enslaved.
People lived in America for thousands of years before Europeans arrived. These first people are called American Indians or Native Americans. They lived in every part of the land, from the cold north to the warm south.
Native Americans formed many different nations, also called tribes. Each tribe had its own language, beliefs, and way of life. Some tribes farmed corn, beans, and squash, and others hunted buffalo, fished, or gathered plants.
When Europeans came, life changed a lot for Native Americans. Many died from new diseases, like smallpox, that Europeans brought. Many also lost their land in wars and through treaties (written agreements) that were often broken.
Many American Indian tribes still live in the United States today. The federal government officially recognizes more than 570 tribes. Many tribes have their own governments and their own lands, called reservations.
Some tribes are linked to a region. The Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, and Seminole lived in the Southeast. The Navajo, Apache, Hopi, and Pueblo peoples live in the Southwest.
The Sioux, Cheyenne, Crow, and Blackfeet lived on the Great Plains. The Lakota, also called the Teton Sioux, are part of the Sioux. In the Northeast, the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and later the Tuscarora joined together in a league called the Iroquois.
Other tribes include the Chippewa (also called Ojibwe), Shawnee, Huron, and Mohegan, and the Inupiat, an Inuit people of Alaska. To remember one answer, pick a tribe that is easy for you to say, such as Cherokee or Navajo.
In the 1500s and 1600s, people from Europe began to live in America. A colony is a place ruled by a faraway country, and the people who settle there are colonists. In 1607, the English started Jamestown in Virginia, the first English settlement that lasted.
Many colonists wanted religious freedom, the right to practice their religion in their own way. In England, people who did not follow the official church could be punished. In 1620, the Pilgrims sailed on the Mayflower and started Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts so they could worship freely.
Others came for economic opportunity, which means the chance to own land, find work, and earn a better living. Some came for freedom and political liberty, which means having a voice in how you are governed. Many wanted to escape persecution, which means cruel or unfair treatment because of who you are or what you believe.
Not everyone came to America by choice. Millions of Africans were captured, taken from their homes, and carried across the Atlantic Ocean on crowded ships to the Americas. Several hundred thousand of them were brought to the land that became the United States, starting in Virginia in 1619.
In America, these Africans were sold as slaves. Enslaved people had no freedom and were forced to work without pay, often on large farms called plantations. Families were often separated when people were sold, and their children were born into slavery.
Slavery lasted for almost 250 years in what became the United States. It ended in the whole country in 1865, after the Civil War, with the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. You will learn more about this in the lesson on the Civil War.
People came from Europe to the American colonies in the 1600s and 1700s for many reasons. Some wanted to practice their religion freely, and others wanted land, work or a better life. The Pilgrims, for example, sailed on the Mayflower in 1620 seeking religious freedom.
Long before Europeans came, many different peoples already lived across North America. They are called American Indians or Native Americans. They had many nations, languages and ways of life.
Millions of people were taken from Africa by force and carried across the Atlantic Ocean. In America they and their children were held in slavery. Slavery in the United States ended in 1865 with the 13th Amendment.
[For a complete list of tribes, please visit bia.gov.]
Many American Indian tribes still live in the United States today. The federal government recognizes more than 570 tribes. Choose one name you can say easily, such as Cherokee, Navajo or Sioux.
People came to the American colonies for many reasons: freedom, the chance to practice their religion, escape from persecution, and the hope of a better life and work. For example, the Pilgrims arrived in 1620 looking for religious freedom. You only need to name one reason.
American Indians, also called Native Americans, lived in America for thousands of years before Europeans arrived. There were many different nations and tribes across the land, each with its own language and way of life.
People from Africa were taken by force to America and sold as slaves. Enslaved people were forced to work without pay and had no freedom. Slavery ended in the whole country in 1865 with the 13th Amendment.
[USCIS Officers will be supplied with a list of federally recognized American Indian tribes.]
There are more than 570 federally recognized American Indian tribes in the United States. You only need to name one, for example Cherokee, Navajo, or Sioux. Pick one short name and practice saying it.
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Lesson text is original study material based on the USCIS 2025 Civics Test Study Guide topics. Editorial status: draft, pending expert review.