Did you know that the Friday after Thanksgiving is National Native American Heritage Day? Signed into legislation back in 2008, it is a civil holiday designed to honor the rich and cultural heritage of this continent’s earliest inhabitants, long predating European settlements and colonization.
Maryland has long been nicknamed “America in Miniature,” owing to the state’s diversified landscape. Because of its unique position on the East Coast with its westernmost limits backing into more mountainous terrain, the way that one Marylander lives off the land can differ drastically from the way another one does, even if both claim residency in the same state. Because of Maryland’s size and versatility, it serves as the perfect annotated example for learning more about the Native American settlement trends throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. So, for this Flashback Friday Feature, I’m taking a look at the different Native American groups that inhabited the area, along with which specific tribes and bands resided here and in what parts.
An Overview of the Mid-Atlantic Region
Prior to the English settlement of Jamestown (Virginia) in 1607, most Native Americans throughout the Mid-Atlantic region were already living in established villages along various waterways. This was especially true of those in coastal communities. In addition to fishing, these groups relied on agricultural practices, primarily growing corn, beans, and squash (the three sisters).
When Europeans started settling in the area most Native American interactions involved trading rather than conflict. Of course, this wasn’t always the case, as history shows us.
There were three main Native American groups that resided in this region. These included the Algonquin tribes, the Iroquois, and the Siouan People.
Algonquian People
Making up a major portion of the tribes throughout the Mid-Atlantic were the Algonquian People. In fact, the Powhatans—known famously as the Native American group residing in Jamestown when John Smith explored the area—were of the Algonquian People. The Powhatan Confederation comprised at least 30 or more indigenous tribes, spanning from the Carolinas on through Maryland.
Throughout Maryland, there were several Algonquin subtribes, although the Big Four included the Delaware, Choptank, Nanticoke, and the Matapeake. Here is an alphabetic rundown of the different Algonquin tribes and bands.
Annemessex: Located throughout present-day Crisfield in Somerset County. Sometime after the Treaty of 1662 and before the 1680s, the tribe combined with the Pocomoke.
Assateague: Also known as Kickotanks, they were originally concentrated throughout the Eastern Shore in what are now Wicomico and Worcester counties. Most eventually emigrated from Maryland, with some moving to the Western Shore as well as to parts of Virginia and Pennsylvania. Most assimilated with tribes in Delaware.
Chaptico: Also known as Cecomocomoco, the Chaptico were largely based in southern Maryland in the surrounding area of St. Mary’s City. They are believed to have blended with neighboring Piscataway bands during the early 1700s.
Choptank: Located throughout the southern stretches of the Eastern Shore in what are now Dorchester and Wicomico counties, the Choptank maintained close ties with the Nanticoke. One of the most notable bands of the Choptank included the Transquaking, which were famously encountered by Capt. John Smith near present-day East New Market in Dorchester County.
Delaware: Sometimes referred to as Lenape, most of the Delaware bands throughout Maryland were based in Cecil County, near their namesake Delaware of today. Their numbers were significantly reduced as a result of disease and conflict, with most eventually relocating to Oklahoma in the mid-1800s.
Doeg: Alternately known as the Taux or Moyumpse, most were concentrated in Virginia, around the Potomac region, which blended borders with regions that are now a part of Maryland today. They maintained close ties with both the Nanticoke and the Piscataway.
Matapeake: Originally based on Kent Island and sometimes going by the name of Monoponson, the Matapeake blended with various other Algonquin tribes throughout the late 1600s and early 1700s.
Mattapanient: Formerly concentrated throughout Charles and Prince George’s counties the Mattapanient were later absorbed by the Patuxent in the mid-1600s and assimilated with the Chaptico.
Mattawoman: Sometimes alternately referred to as the Mataughquamend, the Mataughquamend were previously concentrated in the site of what is now present-day Indian Head in Charles County. Their villages could be found along Mattawoman Creek and on both shores of the Potomac.
Nacotchtank: This tribe alternately went by several different names, including the Anacostian, Anaquashtank, and Nacostine. They primarily comprised the eastern bank of the Anacostia River in what eventually became Washington, D.C. European disease significantly diminished their numbers by the 1600s, with many relocating to what is now present-day Theodore Roosevelt Island on the Potomac River. It is believed that they eventually assimilated into neighboring Piscataway tribes.
Ozinie: Largely located on the upper Eastern Shore near present-day Rock Hall in Kent County, the Ozinie tribe was alternately known as the Wicomiss. Their numbers dwindled as a result of conflict and disease, and it is widely accepted that they merged with the Nanticoke in the 1660s.
Patuxent: Based in Anne Arundel, Calvert, and Prince George’s counties, the Paxuent were later absorbed by the Chaptico in the 1690s.
Pocomoke: Known previously as the Wighcocomoco, prior to European settlement, the Pocomoke were unique from other tribes in that they spoke a separate language. The areas where they were largely based (around the Pocomoke River) include present-day Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester counties. Severalemigrated north by the late 1700s and many eventually merged with tribes from Delaware and Pennsylvania.
Powhatan Confederacy: While largely concentrated throughout Virginia, the vast stretches of the Powhatan Confederacy consisted of various notable tribes across many East Coast States. In Maryland, these included the Accohannock (Eastern Shore), the Pamunkey (Charles, Prince George’s, and St. Mary’s counties), and the Nanticoke (Eastern Shore along the Nanticoke River). Two of the Nanticoke’s most notable bands were the Manokin (in present-day Princess Anne) and the Wicomico (in what is now Salisbury).
Piscataway: Alternately referred to as the Conoy, the Piscataway were heavily concentrated throughout the Chesapeake Bay region around the time that Europeans first made contact. Some notable Piscataway bands included the Chaptico, the Moyaone, the Nanjemoy, and the Potapoco. Some Piscataway can still be found throughout Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, Prince George’s, St. Mary’s, and Wicomico counties.
Shawnee: Originally hailing from what is now Illinois, many Shawnee bands eventually emigrated, owing to conflict among other native nations to the west. The majority made their way over to Kentucky. But one band, the Youghiogheny, eventually settled in what is now Garrett County. By the late 1600s and early 1700s, other Shawnee bands also moved through Maryland, but none settled here permanently.
Tockwogh: The Tockwogh primarily lived along the northern Eastern Shore regions of present-day Kent and Cecil counties.
Yoacomaco: The Yoacomaco was a smaller tribe originally based along the St. Mary’s River. Most famous for their trading with neighboring Algonquian tribes and European settlers, their eventual disappearance after the late 1600s is still a great mystery.
Iroquois
The Native Americans comprising much of the Appalachian Mountain Range were part of the Iroquois Confederacy. Among them were three primary tribes—the Massawomeck, Susquehannock, and the Tuscarora.
Massawomeck: While most Massawomeck historically settled in what is now West Virginia, some could be found throughout Western Maryland in what is now Garrett County.
Susquehannock: Maryland’s Susquehannock population was largely dominant in the northern counties of the state, with villages throughout the Western Shore in Allegany and at the mouth of the Susquehanna River in Cecil and Harford counties.
Tuscarora: Several Tuscarora tribes relocated north and west during the 1700s from the Carolinas, where they had previously resided. Records show that they passed through Frederick County around 1720 before permanently settling around the Great Lakes and in other northern states.
Siouan
Not native to Maryland, sometime during the mid-1700s, three Siouan tribes emigrated through Maryland from North Carolina and Virginia on their way up to New York and Canada. They were the Monacan, the Saponi, and the Tutelo. Two bands that were part of the Siouan and could be found in Maryland at one time were the Saponi and the Tutelo. A few Saponi settled in Dorchester County in the 1740s. It is believed that they may have later merged with existing Nanticoke bands throughout the area.
Many do not understand the true importance and necessity of understanding our state’s diverse Native American heritage. While still largely underrated by history book standards and often blurred by misconceptions and ignorance, let this date serve as a reminder of how more people need to be made aware of the truly first Americans to inhabit this nation.