Cassidy, Michelle
Biography
Professor Michelle Cassidy teaches courses in Indigenous history and the Civil War. She is an advisor for the Native American and Indigenous Studies certificate.
More about Michelle Cassidy
Education
B.A. from the University of Michigan, 2007
Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, 2016
Research Interests
Professor Cassidy’s research focuses on Great Lakes Indigenous history. Her current work focuses on the Anishinaabeg during the Civil War. Michigan’s Company K: Anishinaabe Soldiers, Citizenship, and the Civil War (Michigan State University Press, September 2023) considers the Civil War from the perspective of Anishinaabe soldiers. The men who served in Company K of the First Michigan Sharpshooters chose to enlist in the U.S. Army to contribute to their peoples’ ongoing struggle with the state and federal governments over status, rights, resources, and land in the Great Lakes. The book explores how the Anishinaabeg participated in state and national debates over citizenship, allegiance, military service, and the government's responsibilities to veterans and their families.
Professor Cassidy’s next project highlights stories of Indigenous Civil War veterans and their family members in multiple states. In particular, it emphasizes the experiences of Indigenous women who dealt with the loss of sons and husbands at the same time they navigated federal policies, including allotment.