People of the Dawn: the Wampanoag

The Wampanoag were one of the first tribes to make contact with Whites, even before the Pilgrims landed in 1620, and they were to suffer heavily for it. 

Decades before the founding of the colony at Plymouth (Plimouth), fishermen from Europe had discovered the rich fishing beds of the North American coast, particularly the abundance of cod, herring and other fish that could be salted down, pickled or otherwise easily preserved for food.  They often landed on the coast and traded or interacted with Natives whom they met, such as the Abenaki in a previous post, and the Wampanoag, who inhabited what is now Massachusetts and Rhode Island.  This contact exposed the Natives to two dangers.  Unscrupulous captains short on cash could capture them and sell them in the Caribbean or Spain as slaves, which happened to Squanto, whom we've also met.  Or, Natives could catch diseases for which they had no natural immunity.  The Wampanoag numbered in the thousands just prior to the Pilgrim landing.  However, between 1615-1619, they fell victim to a disease once thought to be smallpox but now leptospirosis, a dangerous fever that is usually fatal without modern medical treatment.  Whole tribes were wiped out, such as Squanto's Patuxet people, a member tribe of the greater Wampanoag Confederacy.

The Wampanoag whom the English encountered depended on agriculture to supplement hunting and gathering.  Because of their rich farmlands, they were a prosperous tribe.  The culture was matrilineal, with women controlling property, assets and inheritance.  Women chose the Sachems and participated in major decisions of the tribe.  Ousemaquin was Sachem of the Wampanoag and Massassoit or Great Sachem of the Wampanoag Confederacy.   He was the Great Sachem with whom the Pilgrims and later Colonists most often dealt, and is known to history today by his title and not his personal name.  At first, Massassoit was suspicious and cautious of these strangers, but did permit Squanto to interact with them and teach them to farm and hunt, though he later became suspicious of how close Squanto seem to be to them.  Later, when Massassoit died, his sons, to whom he had allowed the Settlers to give English names, inherited his title and authority.  As they sought to assert their dominance over their own people and prevent the Settlers from acquiring anymore land, relations soured with the Colonists.  First King Alexander (Wamsutta) and King Phillip (Metacomet), both of whom met their death either at the hands of White people or through instigation of the Settlers.  King Philip's War, begun in 1675, decimated the Wampanoag, particularly the aftermath, where men were sold into slavery in the Caribbean and women were enslaved in New England. 

There are always survivors and, for centuries small pockets of Wampanoag survived in Massachusetts as bets they could, either assimilating with the local population, or keeping to themselves as best they could.  Remnants of their language survived until nearly one hundred years ago, when it died out naturally.  Wampanoag Natives in Massachusetts today are attempting to revive its use.  They are represented by two federally-recognized tribes, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head, plus four state recognized bands.