As a researcher on Indigenous history here, I was captivated by this account, both for its romance and its tragedy. Who were these people? Where did they come from and where did they go? Why was all that happening and what did it mean?
Tag: Mary Ellen Lepionka
Living Descendants of the Native Americans of Agawam
Descendants of the Pawtucket are living in Abenaki, Pequaket, Penobscot, and Micmac communities today in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Nova Scotia.
Ancient Prejudice Against “The Indians” Persists in Essex County Today
Beneath broad acceptance of Indian rights and benign admiration for aspects of Native culture lies inherited hostility toward Native people. Unrecognized, it has gone unchallenged, but locally I have found it evident in these six ways.
Disorder in the Corn Fields: The Colonists and Indian Land, Part 3
Today, vestiges of the Commons survive here as city parks or conservation lands, such as the South Green in Ipswich, and public gardens, such as Boston Common.
“That We May Avoid the Least Scrupulo of Intrusion” – The Colonists and Indian Land, Part I
More than the concepts of sovereignty and private property, the commodification of nature in the service of mercantile capitalism was the crux of the problem.
Manitou in Context
The creator power was regarded as the equal of other powers in the skyworld and the underworld, but it is Kitanitowit’s Gitchi Manitou that ascended to prominence under the influence of Christianity. Of all the great spirits, it most resembled the Christian God and was transformed accordingly during the Contact Period.
The Cape Ann Vikings
I find no evidence that Lief Ericson’s brother Thorvald was buried on Cape Ann in 1004 AD or even that Vikings actually set foot here.
Remembering Mary Ellen Lepionka
We received the sad news today of the death of Mary Ellen Lepionka on October 7, 2024. Mary Ellen wrote prolifically about the Native Americans who lived in our area before European colonization and their descendants. In her professional career, Mary Ellen Lepionka taught social sciences at the college and high school levels, after which… Continue reading Remembering Mary Ellen Lepionka
History of Indigenous Peoples of Essex County, Massachusetts
This essay is about attributions of ethnic identity in the Indigenous history of Essex County, Massachusetts. Will Indigenous and non-Indigenous scholars be able to retell Indigenous history as it was real?
Who Were the Agawam Indians, Really?
It’s hard for people to change their stories—so embedded in deep time and official canon, even when there is a better explanation or a closer truth. I hope it will be possible to change public knowledge about the Native Americans who lived here and get closer to the truth.
The Tragedy of the Wilderness: The Colonists and Indian Land, Part 4
Featured image: North Conway, 1907. The White Mountain National Forest was established in 1918. In New England townships, common lands became increasingly smaller with each subdivision through distribution, sale, or inheritance. As commons shrank, conflicts over herding grew. The number and sizes of herds had to be regulated, as some settlers paid herdsmen to tend… Continue reading The Tragedy of the Wilderness: The Colonists and Indian Land, Part 4
“Brought to Civility” — The Colonists and Indian Land, Part 2
The idea of private property was alien to Native Americans, but the practice of private ownership apparently was not a feature of colonial life either.
Native American Influence on English Fashions
In contact situations in the early 17th century, Europeans were quick to grasp the essential humanity of Native Americans and admired their appearance and physical fitness. Soon, upper-class English wore American feathers and furs, Native Americans prized English woven fabrics and garments, especially tailored shirts.
Resources for Local Native American History and Dialects
Read: Who Were the Agawam Indians Really? Mary Ellen Lepionka's Sources Sources for Algonquian place names include: William Bright’s Native American Place Names of the United States (2004, see especially pp. 32, 41, 554, and 571); R. Douglas-Lithgow’s Native American Place Names of Massachusetts and his Native American Place Names of New Hampshire and Maine… Continue reading Resources for Local Native American History and Dialects
Historic Ipswich 