People of the First Light: The Wampanoags Tell Their Story on the 400th Anniversary of the First Pilgrim Thanksgiving in 1621

Wampum Exhibition at Sea City Museum, Southhampton, UK 

(Created by SmokeSygnals creative agency) 

In today's New York Times, Dana Hedgpeth explains that "for the Wampanoags and many other American Indians, the fourth Thursday in November is considered a day of mourning, not a day of celebration." The Wampanoags helped the Pilgrims survive only to enable "a slow, unfolding genocide of their people and the taking of their land." 

As we reach the 400th anniversary of the first Pilgrim Thanksgiving in 1621, the Wampanoags tell their story at the Mashpee Wampanoag Museum.  On their website the Museum explains that it is located at "the geographic core of the Mashpee Wampanoag people. Eighty-five percent of Wampanoag people live within 20 miles of the Museum." The history and culture of the Wampanoag from the Stone Age to the present are presented in a range of exhibits. Established under the guidance of the Mashpee Historical Commission, the Museum is the only one  devoted exclusively to Wampanoag history. 

Dana Hedgpeth writes that "the Wampanoags, whose name means People of the First Light in their native language, trace their ancestors back at least 10,000 years to southeastern Massachusetts, a land they called Patuxet.

In the 1600s, they lived in 69 villages, each with a chief, or sachem, and a medicine man. They had “messenger runners,” members of the tribe with good memories and the endurance to run to neighboring villages to deliver messages.

They occupied a land of plenty, hunting deer, elk and bear in the forests, fishing for herring and trout, and harvesting quahogs in the rivers and bays. They planted corn and used fish remains as fertilizer. In the winter, they moved inland from the harsh weather, and in the spring they moved to the coastlines."

 

(Created by SmokeSygnals creative agency) 

Paula Peters, who runs the SmokeSygnals creative agency said to Dana Hedgpeth that "when she was 8 years old a schoolteacher explained the Thanksgiving tale. After the story, another child asked, 'What happened to the Indians?'

The teacher answered, ‘Sadly, they’re all dead.’

'No, they’re not,” Paula Peters said she replied. 'I’m still here.'"

Paula Peters and other Wampanoags are keeping their culture and traditions alive through education and advocacy. 

(Courtesy of SmokeSygnals/Plymouth 400)

 Website: Mashpee Wampanoag Museum

 Address:

                            414 Main St
                            Mashpee, Massachusetts 02649

 Phone: 508-477-0208

 Email: publicrelations@mwtribe-nsn.gov

(Courtesy of SmokeSygnals/Plymouth 400)

(Courtesy of SmokeSygnals/Plymouth 400)

Good News! Wampanoag, who helped Pilgrims survive, win rights to tribal lands https://t.co/Muf70Jfzm2

— Gregg Chadwick (@greggchadwick) December 31, 2021