Here is an article on the New York Times from 1988 that talks about Modern. Abenaki, Sokoki, and Missoquoi Indians. Homer St. Francis was the Abenaki Nation’s Chief at the time. The Abenaki of Vermort had not yet been recognized, and they were in conflict with Police Cheif Clyde Yarnell over hunting and fishing rights of the modern Abenaki people of Vermont.
CITATION
Johnson, Sally. “Abenakis’ Chief Pursues Cause through Conflict.” New York Times (1923-Current file), Oct 02, 1988, pp. 46. ProQuest, https://0-search.proquest.com.ksclib.keene.edu/docview/110454278?accountid=42512. Accessed 22 October 2018.
It’s difficult to find solid artifacts from the upper-Ashuelot region in the Smithsonian Online Archives. Searching key words such as “Sokoki” or “Pennacook” (A nearby tribe) doe not uncover many artifacts, if any at all. Searching Keywords such as “Abenaki” uncovers artifacts that have have been cited from the Abenaki of Maine. Their are birch bark pictographs from the Maine Abenaki.
There is also a document that talks about Nathan Blake, founding settler of Keene, New Hampshire. The document describes Blake’s capture history, and why Keene, NH should erect a statue of the “bold, noble” Nathan Blake. Thinking back on this document, I wonder what else I would find if I looked into the author or related documents.
“THE ABENAKI” by JAMES BAXTER (1890)
This is a 40 page book describing the mannerisms of the Abenaki and their interactions with other tribes. The book takes a look at Abenaki in a observational way, almost scientific way. They describe the occurrence of an ice-age event that began to retreat, and with that, Indians exploring more north-ward territory.
Unknown Artist. “Abenaki Couple”. 18th Century. Courtesy of the City of Montreal Records Management & Archives, Montreal, Canada. Accessed 21 October 2018.
I wanted share the a painting of an Abenaki couple in Quebec, Canada. It shows their uni-sex attire of a deer-skin robe and moccasins (Missing book Citation). Abenaki who are cited in Canada after 1750 could be of our Sokoki tribe. The Sokoki (or whoever was here in Keene at the time) fled north to Canada. This could be a representation of those people’s attired.
CITATIONS
Baxter, James P. “The Abnakis and their ethnic relations” Smithsonian Libraries, 1890, https://archive.org/details/abnakistheirethn00baxt/page/n3. Accessed 21 October 2018.
Unknown Artist. “Abenaki Couple”. 18th Century. Courtesy of the City of Montreal Records Management & Archives, Montreal, Canada. Accessed 21 October 2018.
Timelines are really useful tools to visualize lots of historic data. Many of the books and papers do not read in a chronological order. It is useful to piece together information on a timeline so that we can see the gaps that we have yet to understand.
Figure 1. Keene State Collge students and Archivist (Left to right: Dorothy Arroyo, Rodney Obien, Jeniffer Afualo-Robinson)
Our class was tasked with discovering our research resources on and nearby our campuses. At Keene State College we have the Mason Library, Mason Library Archives, and Cheshire Historical society, on campus. We also have access to Keene Public Library. It is a 20-minute walk from campus to get there.
Every Keene State College student has access to online databases and inter-library loans for both books/media and research journals. The inter-library loan requires filling out a simple online form, and there is no cover charge. The reference library works by appointment. Keene State College student Jeniffer Afualo-Robinson and I were unable to contact the reference librarian on our initial search. The front desk-help recommended us to connect with the research and writing help-desk’s student workers. They are available Sunday through Thursday.
We were also connected to Mason Library’s Archivist, Rodney Obien (Figure 1.). The Mason Library’s Archive are open by scheduled appointment. Obien told us that the archives had a focus on social justice of specifically Malaysian Natives, and there was nothing on Keene, New Hampshire’s local native history.
Obien did connect us with the New Hampshire State archivist Brian Burford. Burford offered us some valuable insight on native land-transfer and directed us to a specific writing available in the State Archives called “Historical Indian-Colonial Relations of New Hampshire.” Which he Burford has offered to share with us.
The last pieces of advice Obien left us with were archives etiquette and a lead on possible research into Quebec’s Native Archives and possibly Britain’s Archives for deeds, papers, etc.. Obien mention that there is a small amount of research on Natives to be done at the Chesire Historical Society. At some point with in the next week I will be making a trip to the Historical Society to ask what there is and how the staff there could help in our search.
The call number in the Mason Library for Abenaki related texts is E99. I checked out a book by Coin G. Calloway called “Dawnland Encounters” (Figures 2 and 3.) that attempts to describe how the interactions of the Natives and Colonials actually went in New England. The text is a bit dated, so maps and information may not be accurate, but it has helped immerse me into the conversation that surrounds the Native’s story in New England.
Figure 2. Cover page of Colin Calloway’s “Dawnland Encounters” (1991)Figure 3. Sample of Collin Collaway’s “Dawland Encounters” (1991)
Fig. 1. Geographic map of the New England states and New York state. Keene, NH is pinned in the middle.Fig. 2. Geographic map highlighting the valley and city of Keene, NH and the Ashuelot Watershed. The green triangles are large hills.Fig. 3. Map of Ashuelot River and Watershed from New Hampshire’s Department of Environmental Services.
Keene, NH is located just north of New Hampshire’s southern border. The small city a two-hour car ride from Boston, Massachusetts. The city sits in the valley between three large hills (See figure 2) with-in the Ashuelot watershed. As recently as 11,000 years the Keene valley was underwater as part of a glacial lake. When the iced-age ended, the glaciers melted, and the lake drained, leaving behind a 64-mile long river that cuts through the south-west corner of New Hampshire (See Fig. 3). This proves interesting when presented with the evidence of Abenaki people living in Keene as recently as 9,000 years ago. The region that Keene is associated with is the “Monadnock Region” Mount Monadnock is a 3,000-foot-tall mountain that beautifully overlooks the towns and cities around it.
Fig. 4. Ashuelot River Park in Keene, NH
Ashuelot is Native American word that means “River”, thought could also be used to describe “a land in between places.” Marge Bruchac from the Cheshire Historical Society writes “…referring to the flat land between the surrounding mountains, criss-crossed with trails that lead to other familiar places.” (2006). Monadnock is derived from the Algonquin word “M’an-and-noc” that means “Mountain standing alone” (Kokx, 2003). Many businesses and land mark names with-in the city of Keene often adopt a version of Ashuelot or Monadnock. For example The Ashuelot River Park (See Fig. 4) was built on the Ashuelot river after the mills down-town closed in the early 20th century. More recently, one business owner on Main Street named his business “Monadnock Imaging” (See Fig. 5) in reference to being located in the region (The owner is originally from Connecticut).
Fig. 5. “Monadnock Imaging” Photography needs Shop on Main Street in Keene, NH.
Welcome to Dorothy Arroyo’s COPLAC “Hidden Pasts” Class Blog Page. Our online course is making an attempt to understand what happened when the “ownership” of land moved from the native people of America to early colonials. The goal is to digitize their own understandings of written and spoken archives. Arroyo is working to understand this “transference” of land in the Monadnock Region of New Hampshire. Arroyo is working out of Keene State College in Keene, NH alongside Professor Marie Duggan and Student Jenifer Afualo.
Keene State College – Where Dorothy Arroyo, Jeniffer Afualo, and Marie Duggan are based out of. Allegedly the former home of folks from the Abenaki Tribe.
THE GOAL
Arroyo’s goal is to present her findings in both a way that gets to the roots and truth of the natives that were in Keene before European Colonists arrive AND is engaging for the online audience. She is also aiming to educate that online audience on how to do archival research by showing her own learning process.
THE PERSONALITY
Arroyo is an Undergrad who is pursuing an Environmental Studies Major with a Management Minor. She has a unique personality that illuminates the phrase “Work Hard, Play Hard.” Through-out her blog posts you may notice a combination of scientific-writing structure and casual online word-play. She aims to have sophisticated base to her writing, but also includes layman’s terms. She wants to connect all the dots for her readers and openly address when there are unanswered questions through her research and findings.
THE DRIVE
“There is so much that we don’t know. We were taught that there were these peaceful, but also violent people here before us. They believed these lands were sacred. I don’t blame them, Keene, NH is the most beautiful place I’ve ever lived. It really lights a fire in me that there is no clear information of the internet that highlights their story. Who they really were, what they really did. I want to know who stood on this land before me and why they loved this place. I want to share that information with the world. Be another bridge in telling their story based on what I find in the archives.”
