In the nineteenth century, settlers spread across North America with astonishing
speed, dislodging Native peoples as they did. In this lecture, Daniel Immerwahr
explores the environmental dimension of that. North America was (and is) unusual for
its bounty of timber; the present-day United States is where the world’s tallest, oldest,
and largest trees all grow. This timber, Immerwahr argues, facilitated settler
colonialism in two important ways. It attracted settlers and subsidized their activities,
allowing them to build up their habitations quickly and cheaply. And it allowed them to
not just evacuate but annihilate Native towns, with torches.

This much-anticipated 10th Annual John Patrick Diggins Memorial Lecture, featuring Daniel Immerwahr (Northwestern U.), will take place on Wednesday, March 29, 2023, 6:30 pm in the Skylight Room. Please RSVP to HISTORY@gc.cuny.edu

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