As The Wetu Turns

It’s been a crazy few weeks- travelling non-stop for the education department.

Been all over the eastern part of the state- Dover, Andover, Mendon

Heading to Utah first week of December…this is our busiest time of year!

-c-

Congratulations to our new President, Barack Obama!

it is so wonderful to see someone from the flip side of the coin being chosen by the people to represent us.  What I would like to know is: when will we see a Native president?

It is so important in this day and age for all to be included.  To feel as if they have a place at the table.  I saw a video the other day, in which Obama spoke directly to the Native people of this land.  He followed up on his promises he made during the campaign, and reiterated his dedication to fairness and representation for all.

Now, many of you might not know this, but we have actually had a Native Vice-President.  His name was Charles Curtis.  Served under Herbert Hoover- (I guess that’s why we don’t hear too much about him today.)  Served from 1929-1933 go to wikipedia or such for more info….

Hey everyone-a little update from Casey.

I just got back from Humboldt County in CA.

Did a bunch of programs for the Wampanoag education dept.  Visited about ten schools in two days.  Taught about 600 kids from 1st grade to seniors in high school. Also taught a bunch of teachers.

All in all it was great time, very beautiful area.  I took some pics which I will post coming up.  Got some shots of the beach, and also some shots of a number of Yurok houses which I saw. They are located at a state park, so it not quite the same as what we do here.

well- see ya!  -casey-

Hello Readers,

Fall is in the air here at Plimoth Plantation, and this is the time of the year it gets very busy around here.

The months of October and November we are just a little busy for some reason.  I think it might have something to do with a up and coming  holiday.

What holiday might that be?

Why, Thanksgiving of course.  I hope you didn’t think I was talking about Columbus day did you?

Don’t get me talking about that guy.

The fall brings in lots of group tours from all over the United States and sometimes Canada too.  Most of these tours are going around New England looking at the foliage changes.  The beautiful colors in the trees: the reds, yellows and oranges;  which get so pretty at this time a year.

The other type of groups we get are lots and lots and lots of school kids from all over the state of Massachusetts and sometimes across the country.

They all want to know about Thanksgiving and how we got along with the colonists.

We must answer that question thousands of times in one day.  We can sometimes can get 1800 to 2000 kids coming through from 9:30am to 2:00pm.

Just as fast as they come in to the Wampanoag Homesite, they are gone and then we have nice quiet afternoon with families coming though.

This fall, like most, we will make a new mishoon (canoe).

It will be made of a very large tree, most often pine,  because it is difficult to find large hardwood trees today.

We make a boat in the spring and another in the fall; we can also stay warm beside it, because we burn it out with fire.  (When it’s cold the visitors will pass you by if you don’t have a fire to share with them.)

Soon we will be closing for the winter.  We will have more to talk about between now and then.

Thanks for all your comments, and keep them coming!

“My style is the best, and so I challenge you”

Squanto, Squanto, Squanto….he’s a character all right.

Always branded a traitor.  But is it true?

point-  Squanto was a Patuxet Wampanoag- not a Pokanoket:  So why we he then be bound by Massasoit’s rule ?

Massasoit was from 40 miles away, in present day Warren and Bristol, Rhode Island, and prior to the colonists’ landing would have had no jurisdiction in the community of Patuxet.

In fact, Combatant, being the leader of Nemasket( or present day Middleborough, a mere ten miles distance from Plymouth), would have had far more right to dictate how relations were conducted between the two sides.

point- Squanto could not have been a traitor to his own people, if they were in fact plotting with him against the English.

point-there is nothing in the treaty that obligates the English to turn over any of their own people  to Massasoit, and there is certainly nothing about the English having to turn over non-English allies to Massasoit, such as would have been the case with Squanto.

The point of all this being that history is much more complicated than we generally ackonwledge, and even within a close knit community, such as we have here in the Wampanoag Indigenous Program, there can be wildly differing opinions and interpretations of historical events.

My personal opinion on Squanto is that he is a much more complicated individual than we give credit for, but truly, a very human figure.

Hello everyone, this is Phillip “Lone Fox” Wynne, from everybody’s favorite- the Wampanoag Indigenous Program here at Plimoth Plantation.

For those who don’t know me, I am the supervisor of 17th century indigenous men’s crafts on the Wampanoag homesite; a living historical representaion of Wampanoag culture and technology, with modern interpreters from North American first nations peoples.

Everyday I tell the inquiring public about who we are, and where we come from, and what makes our culture;  what makes us a people.  Everyday I find myself giving reference to a past relative’s wise words and stories of how things came to be.

This oral history is being widely accepted, in my experiences lately.  The spoken history of the Wampanoag and our neighboring nations can be traced as far back as 14,000 years, dwarfing the age of written history on Cape Cod by a just a lil’ bit.

The text of greek and roman alphabets in the area with the Wampanoag language is only about 372 years.  That’s 372 years of misinterpretation from a biased point of view.

Keep in mind; first a puritan’s point of view, and then years and years of every other author writing their misinterpretation of… a misinterpretation!  (Okay; not to stray from the point, but ya see where I’m coming from here?)

Oral histories around the world from first nations peoples are what makes us who we are. I am very fortunate and thankful that our fellow human beings can share, listen and celebrate each other’s cultures.

-Uh oh, time to go to work- peace!

Hello readers,

I had said awhile back that I would answer the question of whether or not the English broke the treaty with the Wampanoag and how they did it.  Here is my answer to that..

YES; I know they broke the treaty by not handing over Squanto to Massasoit for committing the crime of treason against his own people.  The English broke rule 2 under the agreement of peace (or what I call the “war alliance”)

What it said is “and if any of his did hurt to any of ours, he should send the offender, that we might punish him”.  Why should we not look at that the same way for the Native People?

First let me tell you what Squanto did to commit treason.   In March of 1622 Hobbamock, a trusted advisor of Massasoit, came to the colonists with a warning about their trip to visit the Masssachuseuk. Hobbamock told them of possible treachery on the part of the Natives there.

Believing that they were in league with the Narragansetts, who would take the opportunity to attack Plymouth in the absence of the trading party, and the Massachuseuk, would also take that same opportunity to kill the trading party.  Hobbamock told the English that Squanto was a part of this conspiracy, citing as evidence the many secret meetings that Squanto had with other natives.  Often these meeting were out in the woods.

This was not a custom of the Wampanoag, as they would meet out in the open, not concealed from others.

They listened to what Hobbamock said, but still wanted to go and trade up north.

The next day they headed out of the harbor to Massachusetts bay in the shallop.

The party consisted of Myles Standish and ten men with Hobbamock and Squanto.  At this point a relative of Squanto ran from the woods to the Plantation bleeding from a head wound.  He told them at Plymouth that the Namaskets and Narragansetts were accompanied by Massasoit and Conbatant and intending to attack Plymouth.  Hoping to recall the men in the shallop, Governor Bradford caused three cannon shots to be fired. The trading party heard the shots and came back to the Plantation.

When Hobbamock heard the rumor he knew it was not true.  He would have been consulted concerning any war plans and Massasoit would not have planned a war without Hobbamock’s advice.  He assured the English of Massasoit’s faithfulness towards the plantation.  Squanto had told various Native groups that he had enough influence with the English to cause them to make war on whomever he advised them were their enemies.  Squanto and Hobbamock had seen the Englishmen dig up the dirt floor of the storehouse  where the English stored the gunpowder.  Apparently Squanto knew what it was that was kept in the ground for safekeeping; however he told Hobbamock what he had been telling other Natives; “that was the place wherein the plague was buried”.

After some consultation with the colonists Hobbamock sent one of his wives on a private mission to Pokanoket to see if she could gather any information on what  was going on there.  Upon her arrival she found all things quiet and normal, and that no plans had been made for any military expedition.  She told Massasoit what had happened at Plymouth, which caused him to understand that it was Squanto plotting, at which he was greatly offended.  He sent word to Plymouth that he was pleased that the governor that had good thoughts of him and reassured the colony that, according to the treaty he would warn them of any threats to them.

Squanto got off fairly easily; all he received was a sharp rebuke from the governor.  The Native people were informed that the English had no part in his treachery, which would have caused Squanto a loss of status and branded him as a liar.  Even when Massasoit came personally to Plymouth  demanding Squanto’s execution the governor refused to allow the due punishment which was a treaty violation.

Point # 2 in the treaty  “And if any of his hurt any of ours, he should send the offender, that we might punish him“. That’s how they broke the treaty by not giving Squanto up for his punishment.

What do you  think?

Should the Governor  have given Squanto up for his punishment?

Here’s a fishing weir I built in the eel river. They are the sticks you see coming out of the water.

Below the water there are sticks woven between the upright sticks to make a  fence so the fish can’t swim out.

Archaeologists found a very large fishing weir in Boston harbor that was built before Back Bay was filled in to make part of the city. (Boylston street area)

It had 56 thousand stakes, just like you see in this picture.

You can go to www.fishweir.org and get a look at more info on that one.

I checked the garden today, and to my surprise I found a hole where the snapping turtle laid her eggs.

I found these empty egg shells. They must have hatched last night because I did not see the hole yesterday when I looked. It takes 90 day to hatch and this would be day 93, just 3 days late; not bad.

I had hoped to see the little ones make it to the water but it was not in the cards for me.

I guess maybe next year, when the snapping turtle leaves her eggs again. I hope to see her next June.

Thanks Tim

What do you think?

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