All Topics  
Massachusett

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Massachusett
 
 
  Topics Massachusett Topic Home

The Massachusett were a tribe of Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans in the United States are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas from the regions of North America now encompassed by the continental United States United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii....
 who lived in areas surrounding Massachusetts Bay in what is now the state of Massachusetts
Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a U.S. state located in the New England region of the Northeastern United States United States. It borders Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north....
. One of the first to encounter English colonists, their numbers were quickly depleted, although descendants continue to inhabit the Greater Boston area. "Massachusett" translates from Algonquian as "The people who live near the great hill". By local legend this refers to the Blue Hills
Great Blue Hill

Great Blue Hill is a hill of 635 feet located within the Blue Hills Reservation in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Massachusetts, 10 miles southwest of Boston, Massachusetts....
 located south of Boston.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Massachusett'
Start a new discussion about 'Massachusett'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


The Massachusett were a tribe of Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans in the United States are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas from the regions of North America now encompassed by the continental United States United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii....
 who lived in areas surrounding Massachusetts Bay in what is now the state of Massachusetts
Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a U.S. state located in the New England region of the Northeastern United States United States. It borders Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north....
. One of the first to encounter English colonists, their numbers were quickly depleted, although descendants continue to inhabit the Greater Boston area. "Massachusett" translates from Algonquian as "The people who live near the great hill". By local legend this refers to the Blue Hills
Great Blue Hill

Great Blue Hill is a hill of 635 feet located within the Blue Hills Reservation in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Massachusetts, 10 miles southwest of Boston, Massachusetts....
 located south of Boston. They belong to the Algonquian family of peoples. They were almost totally wiped out by a European-introduced plague between 1616 and 1619, and the remaining population was scattered in the wake of a massacre of Massachusett military leaders led by Captain Miles Standish of Plymouth Colony
Plymouth Colony

Plymouth Colony was an English colonial venture in North America from 1620 until 1691. The first settlement was at New Plymouth, a location previously surveyed and named by John Smith of Jamestown....
 in 1623. A period known as the Great Migration
Great Migration (Puritan)

The Great Migration refers to the migration of Europeans from England to New England in the years 1630 to 1640.The seeds of this migration were sown many years earlier when King James I of England determined to oppose the growing Puritan population of England....
 between 1630-1640 introduced over 20,000 English settlers to formerly Massachusett territory. Though much diminished in size and strength from their numbers before the arrival of English colonists, the Massachusett Indians were documented to have participated in King Philip's War
King Philip's War

King Philip's War, sometimes called Metacomet's War or Metacom's Rebellion, was an armed conflict between indigenous peoples of the Americas inhabitants of present-day southern New England and English colonists and their Native American allies from 1675–1676....
 of 1675-1676.

The Massachusett fished the shores, and farmed the lands, migrating from longhouses on the coast to wigwam settlements inland for farming. The tribes were introduced to John Eliot
John Eliot (missionary)

John Eliot was a Puritan missionary born in Widford, Hertfordshire, Hertfordshire, England....
, who converted them to Christianity
Christianity

Christianity is a Monotheistic religion #Christian view religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus as New Testament view on Jesus' life....
, created a written alphabet and also published the Bible
Bible

The Bible is the central religious text of Judaism and Christianity. The exact Books of the Bible is dependent on the religious traditions of specific denominations....
 in the native language. The tribe was confined to praying villages and later suffered at the hands of colonists, who mistrusted the Indians after King Philip's War
King Philip's War

King Philip's War, sometimes called Metacomet's War or Metacom's Rebellion, was an armed conflict between indigenous peoples of the Americas inhabitants of present-day southern New England and English colonists and their Native American allies from 1675–1676....
, despite the fact that Massachusett Indians had served as guides and scouts. Many perished in the islands in Boston Harbor, where they were confined. Crispus Attucks
Crispus Attucks

Crispus Attucks was one of five people killed in the Boston Massacre in Boston, Massachusetts. He has been frequently named as the first martyr of the American Revolution and is the only Boston Massacre victim whose name is commonly remembered....
, the first casualty during the Boston Massacre
Boston Massacre

The Boston Massacre refers to an incident involving the deaths of five civilians at the hands of British Army on March 5, 1770, the legal aftermath of which helped spark the rebellion in some of the British colonies in America, which culminated in the American Revolution....
 was of Massachusett descent through his mother.

In 1869 Massachusetts passed an act making the Massachusett United States citizens and "terminating" their nationhood. However two communities still survive:

  • One community of the Massachusett are residents of Natick
    Natick, Massachusetts

    Natick is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States. Natick is located near the center of the MetroWest region of Massachusetts, with a population of 32,170 at the 2000 census....
    . See Praying Indians.
  • One community of the Massachusett are residents of Brockton
    Brockton, Massachusetts

    Brockton is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States. The population size was recorded as 94,304 in the 2000 census; the size has roughly stayed about the same since....
    . They are Ponkapoag.
  • Another community of the Ponkapoag were residents of Canton
    Canton, Massachusetts

    Canton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 20,775 at the 2000 census. Canton is part of Greater Boston, about 15 miles southwest of downtown Boston....
    . The last member of this community died in 1852 at age 101.


See also

  • Wetu


External links