Virginia Indian History at Menokin

Virginia Indian History at Menokin. . Many place names, like the Rappahannock River and Menokin, come from the language of the Algonquian-speaking tribes who lived here for centuries before Europeans arrived., This is Cat Point Creek, a branch of the Rappahannock River. The river shares its name with the people who lived here when English colonists first arrived. The earliest written records of the Rappahannock may be from John Smith's 1608 voyage up the river; however, archaeological evidence like pottery shards and fire-cracked rocks show that people may have occupied the Menokin site at least as early as 500 B.C., The Rappahannock provided for their people by fishing, hunting, trading, and adaptable agriculture. The Rappahannock knew the land and water well. They canoed the waterways of the Chesapeake Bay to trade with other tribes and to obtain fish and game. The Rappahannock also grew crops like squash, corn, and beans, moving their fields often, so as to allow the land to replenish itself. They believed that land and other natural things were not owned, and should be respected., Europeans believed in land ownership, and had not yet developed sustainable land-use practices. This lack of knowledge led to the rapid consumption and deterioration of the land that plagued the American South for many years. The English colonists claimed pieces of land for themselves, limiting the movement of and limiting the lifestyle of the Rappahannock., (sidebar) , The Rappahannock , As the English spread to the north and west, they did not see fences and neatly plowed fields. This led them to assume that the American Indians were not using the land. Disagreement over land use and what the English saw as property rights led to decades of conflict between the colonists and the Rappahannock., In 1651, the Rappahannock were pressured into signing their first tract of land over to an Englishman named Moore Fauntleroy. In an effort to maintain strong tribal identity in the face of encroaching colonists, the Rappahannock moved to the swamplands on the southern side of the river., Despite this concession, the English insatiably claimed more and more land, restricting the mobility of the Rappahannock, who were forced to move several more times., (captions) , ABOVE: Projectile points found at Menokin., The Rappahannock identity is still strong today. Although the descendants of many of the tribes John Smith met did not maintain their tribal identity, the Rappahannock still have a strong presence in Virginia today. They were officially recognized by the Commonwealth of Virginia in 1983 and they promote appreciation of their culture through a Tribal Center in Indian Neck, located in King and Queen County., Captain John Smith described the river as "pleasant, well inhabited, fertile, and a goodly navigable river." Many place names, like the Rappahannock River and Menokin, come from the Algonquian-speaking tribes who lived here for centuries before the English arrived. , Aerial view of the Menokin property . Menokin Bay on Cat Point Creek with the Rappahannock River on the horizon