Time Period: Late 19th century, Early 20th century, Gilded Age, Progressive Era Published in September 2016, it is one in a series that brings the important stories of historic places into classrooms across the country. The lesson was written by Maria Lee, Historical Anthropologist, and Katie Orr, Historian and Education Coordinator at NPS Cultural Resources Office of Interpretation & Education. Army War College Library, Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections, and National Archives and Records Administration. This lesson is based on the National Register of Historic Places nomination file for “Carlisle Indian Industrial School” (with photos) and resources from the Library of Congress, U.S. Army War College, but it continues to be a place to study and reflect on those assimilation policies and to honor the memories of those students. The Carlisle campus today is occupied by the U.S. The Carlisle model spawned 24 more off-reservation schools. The Carlisle Indian Industrial School opened in 1879 and operated for nearly 30 years with a mission to “kill the Indian” to “save the Man.” This philosophy meant administrators forced students to speak English, wear Anglo-American clothing, and act according to U.S. Children from over 100 distinct cultures left home to live at an off-reservation school at Carlisle Barracks, an old military base. They came from the farthest corners of the United States and its territories: Thousands of American Indian children, some barely teens, boarded trains, stagecoaches, and ships bound for Carlisle, Pennsylvania, in the wake of the 19th century’s Indian Wars. Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections

Attended boys state survived