Comparatively little is found of Helen Hunt Jackson's writing on the Web. She is primarily known for two full length books on Native Americans, the novel Ramona and the non-fiction work A Century of Dishonor. However, the influence of these two works is easily seen today. The novel's popularity has resulted in a permanent influence on the geography of southern California. Inland from San Diego, it is impossible to drive far without encountering the name Ramona on streets and major highways. The small city Ramona was renamed in 1884 after the heroine of the novel. The Palo Alto Historical Association notes that Ramona Circle and Ramona Street were both named for the novel's heroine. The book is listed in Traditional Classics in Children's Literature.
However, the other book, A Century of Dishonor, had a more far reaching effect on American politics, chronicling the treatment of the Native Americans by the U.S. government. For many years Ms. Jackson circulated tracts and petitions in support of Indian causes. She went on nationwide lecture tours and challenged Theodore Roosevelt to a discussion of the condition of the Indians in America. After the uproar caused by the publication of A Century of Dishonor, Ms. Jackson was appointed a special commissioner to investigate conditions for the Indians in California. Ramona drew on her experiences in California to draw further attention to Indian Rights issues.
Today, while considered considered part of the Utopian movement of the 19th century, her work is reprinted, exerpted in anthologies for the classroom and generally acknowledged to have been a major influence on public thinking about the treatment of Indians. Her work is discussed in conferences; a video, Loving Rebel - Helen Hunt Jackson (1830-1885), has been made. Knowledge of her contribution is expected in the new history standards, and in environmental education courses.