 Through meticulous archival research, she traced patterns of Spanish conquistadors returning to their home region of Extremadura in Western Spain.Her doctoral dissertation brought attention to the whole field of Spanish Atlantic history, which culminated when she was a co-winner of the Conference on Latin American History's Bolton Prize (1990) for the book, followed quickly by a prize awarded by the Spanish Ministry of Culture.Altman followed up "Emigrants and Society" quickly with her second co-edited and co-authored volume, ""To Make America"