Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1894-06-07
PowHATAN.s Tribe.
Its Last Remnant Exists In the Pamunke-
Indians OF Virginia.

How strange it seems that a remnant
of the once powerful confederacy of
Powhatan should actually exist at this
day not so very far from Washington!
This last fragment of a nation, which,
at the time of the landing of Columb bus,
occupied all of the region hereabout
including large part of Virginia and
Maryland, consists of about one hun
dred and ten individuals They call
themselves the Pamunley, and dwell
at what is known as s'Indiantown,' -
which is situated on and comprises the
whole of a curiously-shaped neck of
land extending into Pamunkey river
and adjoining King William county,
Va, on the south The town con-
sists of eight hundred acres, and is al
most entirely surrounded by water, be-
ing connected with the mainland by a
narrow strip. The comparative safety
afforded by the situation in time of
war is doubtless accountable for the
presence of the tribe in this spot; very
likely their survival is due to the pro-
lection thus given.
On the death of Powhatan he was
succeeded by Opechancanough, chief of
the Pamunkey. The tribe was at that
time the most powerful OF the thirty
warlike tribes which composed the
confederacy. The entire nation had
two thousand four hundred warriors
and comprised about eight thousand
individuals. OF this population one
thousand were of the Pamunkey con-
tingent. The disastrous attacks on
the early settlers of Virginia by the
savageS under Powhatan are well
known to history.
Powhatan was a chief of remarkable
valor and judgment. The confederacy
organized under the direction of his
savage genius was one of the most not
able among the many unions of native
American tribes. The prominence of this
aboriginal nation in the early history of
this country is partly due to the fact
that Capt. John Smith was a writer as
well as an explorer. Opechancanough
himself was man of unusual ability
His leadership in the massacre of 1922
made him the most dreaded enemy
ever encountered by the colonists OF
that period
The Pamunkey Indians, whose dis
tinction it is to be the only Virginia
tribe that has survived the encroach-
ment of civilization, have excited the
interest of the bureau of ethnology,
which has just issued bulletin de-
scribing them.
Oddly enough, their number has
varied hardly at all during the last
century. jefferson, writing in 1871,
estimated the population of Indian
town at one hundred. and Howe, nearly
seventy years later, placed it at the
same figure. No member of the tribe
is of full blood. While the copper
colored skin and the straight. coarse
L. - r. l.
decidedly in some individuals. there
are others whose origin would not be
detected by the ordinary observer.
There has been considerable intermix-
ture of white blood and not little of
that of the negro, though the laws of
the tribe now strictly forbid marriage
with persons of African descent
The Pamunl1eys have a great deal of
race pride. Though they acknowledge
the whites as equals, they consider the
blacks far beneath their social level.
Their feeling toward the negro is illus
trated by their recent indignant re-
fuSa1 to accept a colored teacher who
was sent to them to conduct the free
school which the state of Virginia pro-
vides for them. They are very anxious
to keep their blood free from further
mingling with that of other races, and
how to accomplish this purpose is a
serious problem of theirs, inasmuch
as they recognize the danger of too
frequent marriages within the pale of
consanguinity. To obviate this diff
Guilty the chief men have been trying to
devise plan by which they may induce
immigration from the Cherokees of
North Carolina. The Indian blood in
the Pamunkey tribe is estimated at
from one-ffth to three-fOurthS of the
whole.
The Pamunlzey Indians are not par
ticularly strong and robust, perhaps be-
cause of frequent marriages between
relatives. They are temperate, moral
and peaceable. There is good feeling
between them and their white neigh
neighbors. They are exceedingly proud
of their lineage and love to tell how
bravely and stubbornly their forefath-
ers resisted the entertainments of the
whites. Opechancanough is their hero.
They take great delight in reciting the
familiar story of how this noted chief,
when old and infirm, was carried on
litter to the battle that his presence
might inspire his men to deeds of brav-
cry. Aside from their mode of subsist-
ence, presently to be described, there is
peculiar anu
customs, unless it be an inclination to
excessive use of gaudy colors in their
attire. Their homes are comfortable
and well kept. They all belong to the
Baptist denomination and attend
church on the reservation every Sun
day.
They obtain their living for the most
part in true aboriginal style. Their
chief occupations are hunting and fish
ing, primitive dug-out canoes being
used. Farming they do on a small
scale, but for manual labor they enter
tain a truly aboriginal dislike, fire.
quently hiring negroes to attend to
their little truck patches Considerable
numbers of raccoons, muskratS, offers
and even deer are captured on the reser-
walton. The skins are sold in Rich
mond and Baltimore, as well as many
of the fish they catch. They take shad,
bass, herring and other fishes in large
numbers by means of seines.
In the autumn they hunt reed birds
in very curious fashion They have
what they call ''sora horse" resem-
bling peach basket in size and shape
and made of strips of iron. Before they
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