How to read this project

This is an illustrated historical research project. It distinguishes documented facts from inference and treats maps, dates, treaties, archival documents, and claims of institutional coordination as matters that require verification.

Evidence rules

• Primary sources first. Original treaties, government correspondence, land records, claims, warrants, maps, court decisions, newspapers and lodge records should be cited whenever possible.
• Association is not causation. An official's Masonic membership, overlapping Masonic networks, and documented institutional action by a lodge are different propositions and require different evidence.
• AI finds leads; people verify them. AI can search, transcribe, cross-reference and map records, but conclusions must be checked against original sources and relevant legal context.
• Historical maps must be period-correct. Dates, routes, territorial boundaries, treaty areas, reservations, towns and military movements should match the period shown.
• Reconstructed documents are illustrations, not evidence. Decorative newspaper pages, letters or ledgers must not be mistaken for authenticated archival records.
• Uncertainty stays visible. Claims should be labeled as documented, supported inference, unresolved, or contradicted rather than forced into a predetermined theory.

Purpose: use the historical record to support stronger, informed dialogue—not to substitute imagery for proof.