Patawomeck
Encyclopedia
The Patawomeck tribe of Virginia Indians is based in Stafford County, Virginia
, along the Potomac River
(Patawomeck is another spelling of Potomac). It is one of Virginia's 11 recognized American Indian
tribes. It is not federally recognized. It achieved state recognition in February 2010, aided by anthropology
research conducted by The College of William and Mary.
Today the tribe numbers approximately 500 members. Eighty percent live within ten miles (16 km) of their historic village of Patawomeck. They are undertaking to revive their historic Algonquian
language. In the 17th century, at the time of early English colonization, the tribe was a "fringe" component of the Powhatan Confederacy. At times it was allied with others in the confederacy, and at others, the Patawomeck allied with the English
colonists.
succeeded each other, living along the Potomac River
and its tributaries in the coastal area. Archeological excavations have yielded much data about the prehistoric early cultures. At Indian Point on Potomac Creek
, for instance, part of the later Patawomeck area, archeological excavations in the 1930s revealed a Native American burial ground. Researchers donated 134 skeletons from the grounds to the Smithsonian Institution
. Now that the Patawomeck tribe has been recognized by the state, they may undertake claiming the remains for repatriation
and burial under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
(NAGPRA), though a tribe has to be federally recognized to utilize NAGPRA without extra petitioning.
More recently, a 1996 archeological study by the College of William and Mary
revealed Native American artifacts
dating back to the 15th century. More than 10,000 artifacts were recovered, mostly pottery sherds of the "wrapped-cord type" common among local indigenous
people. While the ancient village site is protected under historic preservation
laws, the land is being steadily eroded by the creek. The coastal peoples were part of the Algonquian
-speaking language family that coalesced into differentiated tribes from present-day New England into the southern states.
The historical Patawomeck tribe formed as one of 32 Algonquian
-speaking peoples in the Tidewater
area of present-day Virginia. They were loosely allied with the powerful Powhatan Confederacy. They were an agricultural people, cultivating varieties of maize
. They also relied on hunting, fishing and gathering resources from their rich environment.
leader John Smith, who visited the people in 1608 in their homeland, between Aquia Creek
and Upper Machodoc Creek. He noted they were cultivating 1000 acres (4 km²) of corn
along the Potomac River. The Patawomeck main town, also called Patawomeck, was located on the north of Potomac Creek, in present-day Stafford County. The weroance of Passapatanzy
, a satellite village, was Japazeus (also spelled Japazaws or Iopassus), younger brother to Kocoum, the main weroance.
The Patawomeck were semi-independent of the Powhatan Confederacy of Chief Powhatan
to the south. They befriended the English colonists (Captain Samuel Argall
in particular), often providing them crucial assistance when the Powhatan would not. When the colonists faced starvation at Jamestown in 1609, Francis West
was sent to buy corn from the Patawomeck. In a violent confrontation, he beheaded two of them and fled in his pinnace to England.
Argall made peace with the Patawomeck in 1612, during the First Anglo-Powhatan War. In April 1613, he captured Pocahontas
, daughter of Chief Powhatan, when she and her husband Kocoum visited the village near present-day Washington, D.C.
He wanted to use her in negotiations with the Powhatan.
The Patawomeck continued to ally with the English in their conflicts with the Powhatan in 1622 (even after Captain Isaac Madison took their weroance prisoner), and in 1644. After settlers began moving into their area in the 1650s, pressures mounted in competition over resources and differing ideas of how to use land. Violent disputes followed. In 1662, Colonel Giles Brent took their weroance Wahanganoche prisoner, but the colonists ordered him released. In October 1665, the weroance sold their remaining land to the colony for a few matchcoats.
In 1666 after continued conflicts, the English colonists declared war against several tribes in the Northern Neck
, including the Patawomeck. After this, the Patawomeck disappeared from the historical record. A silver badge issued to Wahanganoche in 1662, was found in a contemporary archeological excavation near Portobago (or Portobacco) on the Rappahannock River
. It may indicate that the survivors merged with the Portobacco tribe, as did remnants of several other tribes.
wrote of the Native American population living around the original Patawomeck capital. From his studies of the Algonquian
peoples, he believed they were remnants of the old Patawomeck nation. Although without solid proof they were not from another tribe, he called them the "Potomac"..
Today the tribe has 500 members, most of whom live in Stafford County within ten miles of Patawomeck. Through a cooperative venture with the College of William and Mary
, they received research assistance to help document their case for state recognition of the tribe. Virginia recognized the tribe in February 2010, and they are to be represented on the Virginia Council on Indians.
The tribe's language was of the Algonquian
family. It is no longer spoken, but some tribal members are interested in revitalizing the language. They plan to use the audio and printed materials prepared by the linguist Blair Rudes for cast members who portrayed Native Americans in the film, The New World film (2005). Rudes reconstructed the Algonquian language as it was spoken in coastal Virginia in the early 17th century.
The Patawomeck chief
is Robert "Two Eagles" Green. He was an adviser to the filmmakers of The New World (2005). It is about the colony at Jamestown
and the Native American peoples and cultures encountered by the colonists. Green appeared in the film in a non-speaking role. The Patawomeck provided the filmmakers with numerous wild turkey
feathers and deer
antler
s to create authentic clothing for the American Indian characters in the film.
Green portrayed Powhatan in the episode "Pocahontas Revealed" (2007) of PBS
's Nova
. Green is a resident of Fredericksburg, Virginia
. He is originally from White Oak
. His son Jason Green appeared in The New World as a Powhatan
warrior
.
Stafford County, Virginia
Stafford County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state, and just across the Rappahannock River from the City of Fredericksburg. As of the 2000 census, the population was 92,446, increasing to 128,961 in 2010.. Its county seat is Stafford. In 2006, and again in 2009,...
, along the Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
(Patawomeck is another spelling of Potomac). It is one of Virginia's 11 recognized American Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
tribes. It is not federally recognized. It achieved state recognition in February 2010, aided by anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
research conducted by The College of William and Mary.
Today the tribe numbers approximately 500 members. Eighty percent live within ten miles (16 km) of their historic village of Patawomeck. They are undertaking to revive their historic Algonquian
Algonquian languages
The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
language. In the 17th century, at the time of early English colonization, the tribe was a "fringe" component of the Powhatan Confederacy. At times it was allied with others in the confederacy, and at others, the Patawomeck allied with the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
colonists.
History
For thousands of years various cultures of indigenous peoplesIndigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
succeeded each other, living along the Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
and its tributaries in the coastal area. Archeological excavations have yielded much data about the prehistoric early cultures. At Indian Point on Potomac Creek
Potomac Creek
Potomac Creek is a tidal tributary of the Potomac River in King George and Stafford counties, Virginia. Potomac Creek's source lies between the communities of Glendie and Paynes Corner in Stafford County. It empties into the Potomac River at Marlboro Point...
, for instance, part of the later Patawomeck area, archeological excavations in the 1930s revealed a Native American burial ground. Researchers donated 134 skeletons from the grounds to the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
. Now that the Patawomeck tribe has been recognized by the state, they may undertake claiming the remains for repatriation
Repatriation
Repatriation is the process of returning a person back to one's place of origin or citizenship. This includes the process of returning refugees or soldiers to their place of origin following a war...
and burial under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act , Pub. L. 101-601, 25 U.S.C. 3001 et seq., 104 Stat. 3048, is a United States federal law passed on 16 November 1990 requiring federal agencies and institutions that receive federal funding to return Native American "cultural items" to...
(NAGPRA), though a tribe has to be federally recognized to utilize NAGPRA without extra petitioning.
More recently, a 1996 archeological study by the College of William and Mary
College of William and Mary
The College of William & Mary in Virginia is a public research university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States...
revealed Native American artifacts
Artifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...
dating back to the 15th century. More than 10,000 artifacts were recovered, mostly pottery sherds of the "wrapped-cord type" common among local indigenous
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
people. While the ancient village site is protected under historic preservation
Historic preservation
Historic preservation is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance...
laws, the land is being steadily eroded by the creek. The coastal peoples were part of the Algonquian
Algonquian languages
The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
-speaking language family that coalesced into differentiated tribes from present-day New England into the southern states.
The historical Patawomeck tribe formed as one of 32 Algonquian
Algonquian languages
The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
-speaking peoples in the Tidewater
Tidewater (geographic term)
Tidewater is a geographic area of southeast Virginia and northeastern North Carolina that is considered a part of the Coastal Plain. Portions of Maryland facing the Chesapeake Bay are also given this designation. The area gains its name because of the effect the area has from the changing tides of...
area of present-day Virginia. They were loosely allied with the powerful Powhatan Confederacy. They were an agricultural people, cultivating varieties of maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
. They also relied on hunting, fishing and gathering resources from their rich environment.
17th century
The first recorded European encounter was that of the EnglishEnglish people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
leader John Smith, who visited the people in 1608 in their homeland, between Aquia Creek
Aquia Creek
Aquia Creek is a tributary of the tidal segment of the Potomac River and is located in northern Virginia. The creek's headwaters lie in southeastern Fauquier County, and it empties into the Potomac at Brent Point in Stafford County, south of Washington, D.C....
and Upper Machodoc Creek. He noted they were cultivating 1000 acres (4 km²) of corn
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
along the Potomac River. The Patawomeck main town, also called Patawomeck, was located on the north of Potomac Creek, in present-day Stafford County. The weroance of Passapatanzy
Passapatanzy, Virginia
Passapatanzy is a census-designated place in King George County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 1,283....
, a satellite village, was Japazeus (also spelled Japazaws or Iopassus), younger brother to Kocoum, the main weroance.
The Patawomeck were semi-independent of the Powhatan Confederacy of Chief Powhatan
Chief Powhatan
Chief Powhatan , whose proper name was Wahunsenacawh , was the paramount chief of Tsenacommacah, an alliance of Algonquian-speaking Virginia Indians in the Tidewater region of Virginia at the time English settlers landed at Jamestown in 1607...
to the south. They befriended the English colonists (Captain Samuel Argall
Samuel Argall
Sir Samuel Argall was an English adventurer and naval officer.As a sea captain, in 1609, Argall was the first to determine a shorter northern route from England across the Atlantic Ocean to the new English colony of Virginia, based at Jamestown, and made numerous voyages to the New World...
in particular), often providing them crucial assistance when the Powhatan would not. When the colonists faced starvation at Jamestown in 1609, Francis West
Francis West
Francis West was a Deputy Governor of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia.West was the second son of Thomas West, 2nd Baron De La Warr of Wherwell Abbey in Hampshire and his wife, Anne Knollys....
was sent to buy corn from the Patawomeck. In a violent confrontation, he beheaded two of them and fled in his pinnace to England.
Argall made peace with the Patawomeck in 1612, during the First Anglo-Powhatan War. In April 1613, he captured Pocahontas
Pocahontas
Pocahontas was a Virginia Indian notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of Chief Powhatan, the head of a network of tributary tribal nations in Tidewater Virginia...
, daughter of Chief Powhatan, when she and her husband Kocoum visited the village near present-day Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
He wanted to use her in negotiations with the Powhatan.
The Patawomeck continued to ally with the English in their conflicts with the Powhatan in 1622 (even after Captain Isaac Madison took their weroance prisoner), and in 1644. After settlers began moving into their area in the 1650s, pressures mounted in competition over resources and differing ideas of how to use land. Violent disputes followed. In 1662, Colonel Giles Brent took their weroance Wahanganoche prisoner, but the colonists ordered him released. In October 1665, the weroance sold their remaining land to the colony for a few matchcoats.
In 1666 after continued conflicts, the English colonists declared war against several tribes in the Northern Neck
Northern Neck
The Northern Neck is the northernmost of three peninsulas on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in the Commonwealth of Virginia. This peninsula is bounded by the Potomac River on the north and the Rappahannock River on the south. It encompasses the following Virginia counties: Lancaster,...
, including the Patawomeck. After this, the Patawomeck disappeared from the historical record. A silver badge issued to Wahanganoche in 1662, was found in a contemporary archeological excavation near Portobago (or Portobacco) on the Rappahannock River
Rappahannock River
The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west, across the Piedmont, to the Chesapeake Bay, south of the Potomac River.An important river in American...
. It may indicate that the survivors merged with the Portobacco tribe, as did remnants of several other tribes.
20th century to present
In 1928, the anthropologist Frank SpeckFrank Speck
Frank Gouldsmith Speck was an American anthropologist and professor at the University of Pennsylvania, specializing in the Algonquian and Iroquoian peoples among the Eastern Woodland Native Americans of the United States and First Nations peoples of eastern boreal Canada.-Early life and...
wrote of the Native American population living around the original Patawomeck capital. From his studies of the Algonquian
Algonquian peoples
The Algonquian are one of the most populous and widespread North American native language groups, with tribes originally numbering in the hundreds. Today hundreds of thousands of individuals identify with various Algonquian peoples...
peoples, he believed they were remnants of the old Patawomeck nation. Although without solid proof they were not from another tribe, he called them the "Potomac"..
Today the tribe has 500 members, most of whom live in Stafford County within ten miles of Patawomeck. Through a cooperative venture with the College of William and Mary
College of William and Mary
The College of William & Mary in Virginia is a public research university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States...
, they received research assistance to help document their case for state recognition of the tribe. Virginia recognized the tribe in February 2010, and they are to be represented on the Virginia Council on Indians.
The tribe's language was of the Algonquian
Algonquian languages
The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
family. It is no longer spoken, but some tribal members are interested in revitalizing the language. They plan to use the audio and printed materials prepared by the linguist Blair Rudes for cast members who portrayed Native Americans in the film, The New World film (2005). Rudes reconstructed the Algonquian language as it was spoken in coastal Virginia in the early 17th century.
The Patawomeck chief
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
is Robert "Two Eagles" Green. He was an adviser to the filmmakers of The New World (2005). It is about the colony at Jamestown
Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown was a settlement in the Colony of Virginia. Established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 14, 1607 , it was the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States, following several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke...
and the Native American peoples and cultures encountered by the colonists. Green appeared in the film in a non-speaking role. The Patawomeck provided the filmmakers with numerous wild turkey
Wild Turkey
The Wild Turkey is native to North America and is the heaviest member of the Galliformes. It is the same species as the domestic turkey, which derives from the South Mexican subspecies of wild turkey .Adult wild turkeys have long reddish-yellow to grayish-green...
feathers and deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
antler
Antler
Antlers are the usually large, branching bony appendages on the heads of most deer species.-Etymology:Antler originally meant the lowest tine, the "brow tine"...
s to create authentic clothing for the American Indian characters in the film.
Green portrayed Powhatan in the episode "Pocahontas Revealed" (2007) of PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
's Nova
NOVA (TV series)
Nova is a popular science television series from the U.S. produced by WGBH Boston. It can be seen on the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States, and in more than 100 other countries...
. Green is a resident of Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia located south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 24,286...
. He is originally from White Oak
White Oak, Virginia
White Oak is a small agricultural unincorporated community on the Potomac River in southeastern Stafford County in the U.S. state of Virginia.- External links :*...
. His son Jason Green appeared in The New World as a Powhatan
Powhatan
The Powhatan is the name of a Virginia Indian confederation of tribes. It is estimated that there were about 14,000–21,000 of these native Powhatan people in eastern Virginia when the English settled Jamestown in 1607...
warrior
Warrior
A warrior is a person skilled in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based society that recognizes a separate warrior class.-Warrior classes in tribal culture:...
.