Native American Heritage Month
November is Native American Heritage Month. Working with our Wampanoag partners in Mashpee, Massachusetts we recognise and celebrate the accomplishments of the peoples who were the original inhabitants, explorers and settlers of the United States.
Southampton & Native American Heritage
Discover how throughout time, historically famous Native Americans have passed through Southampton’s port. Discover the story behind the Mayors banquet in the Audit House for the ‘Kings of the five nations of the Iroquois’ and how Pocahontas, came to set foot in Southampton. More information soon.
Image: An Indian ‘werowance’, or chief, painted for a great solemn gathering. Drawn by: John White © The Trustees of the British Museum
Read more about Native American’s in Southampton.
Download PDFNew Plaque on Mayflower Memorial
This year we have worked closely with the First Nations Wampanoag tribe, they have been a key factor in our approach to the Mayflower 400 and their contribution has enabled us to widen the lens of local history. This month we announce a new plaque on the Mayflower Memorial remembering the original inhabitants of Patuxet, which became Plymouth Colony under the settlement of the ship’s passengers.
The new plaque reads:
Wampanoag “People of the Dawn”
In memory of the Wampanoag of Patuxet who perished in “the Great Dying” plague of 1616 to 1619 introduced by European and English invaders. The decimated village of Patuxet – a graveyard – was settled by the pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower in 1620. They renamed the village Plymouth Colony.
Film Screenings
Mashpee Nine
On Thursday 19th November 2020, in partnership with Southampton Film Week, Paula Peters’ documentary ‘Mashpee Nine’ was screened. The film recounts details of a police raid, arrest and court trial of nine Wampanoag tribal members who were drumming on the Mashpee Pond campsite July 29, 1976 in Mashpee, Massachusetts. After the screening, Steven Peters led a Q&A session.
Stephano
On Sunday 22nd November 2020, in partnership with Southampton Film Week, Hit and Run History presented their adventure-travel documentary on Mayflower pilgrim Stephen Hopkins, Stephano: The True Story of Shakespeare’s Shipwreck. The one-hour film follows the story of the only Mayflower passenger who had been to North America previously. A decade earlier, Hopkins had been aboard a Jamestown-bound ship that wrecked on Bermuda, inspiring Shakespeare’s final play, The Tempest.
