Settler Colonialism

“May we not observe here one reason of God's transplanting some of his people into this wilderness, that they might be instrumental to carry his name and gospel unto some of these heathen?”

Daniel Gookin, Historical Collections of the Indians in New England

The denial of Native cultivation of the land is just one hallmark of settler colonialism.

Settler Colonialism

A structured form of colonialism that seeks to replace existing populations with a new society.

The tactics of settler colonialism range from warfare and genocide to “legal” land appropriation and assimilation. Settler colonialism in New England included all of these tactics, but began primarily with land encroachment. English methods of land encroachment in the earliest period of settlement were numerous.

Method 1: Spoil the Land

The English set their livestock free to graze and root unchecked, destroying Native planting grounds and other cultivated ecosystems in the process. When Native people protested, settlers insisted that Native villages be fenced to keep the livestock out. This practice made desirable land unusable for Native people while forcing them to confine their surviving spaces within fencing, leaving adjacent lands “free” to be claimed. This demonstrates that even as the English claimed New England was wilderness, they understood how important cultivation of the land was to Native subsistence.

Method 2: Force Debt

As soon as the English obtained any kind of written agreement from Native people, they interpreted it as Native subservience and acceptance of the English legal system. Native participants, for their part, agreed to alliances often with little understanding that this was the case.

After obtaining these agreements, English settlers forced allied Native individuals into debt, often through fraudulent means such as false imprisonment. These debts were imposed with full knowledge that the Indigenous population rarely kept English money, thus forcing them to pay in an equivalent value of land.

Method 3: Assimilate and Consolidate

The precursor to the modern Indian Reservation can be found in 17th century Praying Towns, English-style villages established by Reverend John Eliot for the conversion of local Algonquian groups, including the Nipmuc, to Christianity. Establishing these spaces allowed the English to supplant Native culture with their own and consolidate large groups of Indigenous populations within borders that the English defined themselves. The Native people who inhabited these towns were referred to as "Praying Indians."

The land that is now Framingham had many of these Towns nearby: Natick, Magunkaquog (Ashland), Hassanamesit (Grafton), and Okommakamesit (Marlborough).

No matter how subtle, all tactics of settler colonialism are inherently violent, as they are driven by a philosophy of replacement and dispossession.

Nipmuc Land Deed, 1656

FHC Collections, LD105

This 1656 land deed transfers ownership of “a parcell of Broaken up and ffenced in land” near the Saxonville Falls from five Nipmuc men — William Boman, Captain Josiah (Pennahannit), Roger, James, and Keaquisam — to English settler John Stone. The men were former residents of the land in question, once a Nipmuc village and planting grounds.

Because the document notes the land was fenced, we know that it had already been encroached upon by English livestock. It is possible that the men who made this sale were looking to get some benefit from an abandoned settlement that had already been rendered unusable.

Click on the document to read a transcription.

In the face of encroachment methods, Native people had 3 choices: cede, share, or resist. Each person made their own choices for complex individual reasons which did not preclude changing one’s approach in the future.

Freshwater People
Netus
Nipmuc Massachusetts Map
Salem Mashpee Boston Natick Blackstone Worcester Grafton Webster Dudley Athol Stoughton Framingham Brockton Weymouth Plymouth Milton Wareham Cambridge Waltham Falmouth New Bedford Bourne Medway North Attleboro Tauton Sandwich Hanson

Salem

Mashpee

Boston

Natick

Blackstone

Worcester

Grafton

Webster

Dudley

Athol

Stoughton

Framingham

Brockton

Weymouth

Plymouth

Milton

Wareham

Cambridge

Waltham

Falmouth

New Bedford

Bourne

Medway

North Attleboro

Tauton

Sandwich

Hanson

To all people to whom these presents shall come, greeting: Know yee that wee Great John, alias Wuttaushauk, John Mooqua, John Awoosamug, Senr & his sons Thomas Awoosamug, Samuel Awoosamug, Joshua Awoosamug and Amos Awoosamug, Thomas Waban son of old Mr Waban deceased, John Speen Senr and his sons, James Speen and Abram Speen ; also wee the Daughters of Robin Speen deceased, vizt Sarah the wife of Daniel the Minister, Betty the wife of Pahanumpanum, Mary the wife of Samuel Williams, Hannah the wife of Samuel Uptowanum, Also wife and the sons of Thomas Speen deceased, vizt Thomas Speen Senr & his brother Thomas Speen Junr, Indians all of Natick in the County of Middlesex & Massachusetts Colony in New England, ffor & in consideration of the sum of fforty shillings in currant money of Sd New England to them in hand payd at & before the ensealing &  delivery of these presents by Thomas Danforth Esqr of Cambridge in the above Colony & County, have granted bargained & sold, aliened Enfeoffed & confirmed & by these presents do grant bargaine & sell, alien enfeoffe & confirme unto him the Said Thomas Danforth, all that tract of land to him the sd Thomas Danforth belonging & appertayning, Scittuate, lying & being on the Southerly or South Westerly Side of Sudbury River, & conteyning by Estimation Eight hundred acres more or lesse, & was the grant of the General Court of five hundred Acres part thereof to Richard Russell Esqr deceased, & three hundred acres to Marshall Richard Wayte, late of Boston deceased, to him the sd Thomas Danforth, to have and to hold the above granted tract of land & every part and parcell thereof, together with all the priviledges & appertenances thereunto belonging or in any wise appertayning to him the said Thomas Danforth, his heyrs and Assignes forever to his & theire only proper use and behoof. And the above named Great John Alias Wuttaushauk, Jon Mooqua, John Awoosamug senr,Thomas Awoosamug, John Awoosamug Junr, Samuel Awoosamug, Joshua Awoosamug, Amos Awoosamug, Thomas Waban, John Speen, James Speen, Abram Speen, Sara wife of Daniel, Betsy wife of Pahanumpanum, Mary wife of Sam Williams, Hannah wife of Samuel Uptowanum, Thomas Speend Senr & his brother Thomas Speen Junr do for our selves, & such of our heyres, executors, Administrators & Assigns covenant, promise & grant to & with the abovenamed Thomas Danforth his heyres & Assignes by these Presents that wee have good right & full power to grant bargaine & confirme the abovesd Tract of land & every part & parcel thereof the him the sd Thomas Danforth his heyres & Assigneds for ever, & that he the sd  Thomas Danforth his heyres and Assignes shall & may from time to time & at all times for ever hereafter lawfully peaceably & quietly have hold occupy p— & enjoy the abovegranted premises & every part & parcel thereof without the loss, denyall, contradiction, molestation or disturbance of us the abovenamed Indians, our heyres Executors, Adminstrators or Assignes or of any other people or persons whether Indian or English claiming & having any manner or right, titleinterest therein, from by or under us or either of us or from by or under any other Indian by any means whtsoever. In witness wee the ovenamed Great John, John Mooqua, Hohn Awoosamug Senr, Thomas Awoosamug, John Awoosamug Junr, Samuel Awwosamug, Thomas Waba, John Speen Senr, James Speen, Abram Speen,, Sarah wife of Daniel, Betsy wife of Pahanumpanum, Mary wife of Samuel Williams, Hanna wife of Samuel Uptowanum, Thomas Speen Senr & his Brother Thomas Speend have hereunto sett our hands & seals this first day of October in the year of our Lord Sixteen hundred Eighty & Four Annoq Domini

+ Great John his mark & seale            Samuel Ossamug his mark & seale

+Jno Mooqua his mark & seale          +Thomas Waban his mark & seale

○Old wussamoog his mark & seale

○Thomas Tray his mark & seale          Abram Speen his mark & seale

Sarah hir mark & seale                        Betsey hir mark & seale

Mary hir mark & seale                         Hannah hir mark & seale

Nehemiah hir mark & seale                John Speen his mark & seale

James Speen his mark & seale         John Ossamug his mark & seale

Rachel hir mark & seale

Sealed & delivered in Front of us, The c—- Johsiah Rice his mark, Old Nausawamun his mark

All the persons that Subscribed & sealed this writing who have this marke + before their names appeared before me at the court held at Natick the 1st of October 1684 & freely acknowledged this writing to be their Act & Deed.

Before Daniel Gookin A—

Entered: October 1st 1684 by Tho: Danforth R—

To all people to whom these presents shall come greeting Know ye that I Thomas Danforth of Cambridge in the County of middlesex in New England Planter for an in Consideration of a valuable sum of money to me Secured to be Paid by John Stone of Sudbury in the County aforesaid husbandman have granted bargained and Sold and by these Presents to fully clearly and absolutely grant bargain and sell aliene Enfeoffe and Confirm unto the Said John Stone Two hundred acres of Land being the grant of the Generall Court to Mr Elijah Corlett of Cambridge aforesaid and by me Purchased of the Said Elijah the Said Land to be layd out According to the appointment of the Genreall Court, Also Twenty acres of meadow land lying in five Severall Parcell in the wastelands on the westward of the Said John Stones house, To Have and To Hold the said lands and grants of the Same with all the Privelidges and appurtenances to the Same appertaining or in any wise belonging unto him the Said John Stone his heirs and assigns forever to his and their only Proper use without the lawfull Lett Claim hindrance Deniall or Contradiction of me the Said Thomas Danforth my heirs Executors administrators or assigns or by any other Person of Persons Claiming and having any lawfull Right title or Interest therein or to any Part thereof by from or under me, In witness whereof I the Said Thomas Danforth and also Mary my wife (in acknowledgement of her free consent to this my act and Deed have hereunto put our hands and seals this thirteenth day of December anno Domini 1661.

Thomas Danforth and Seal

Mary Danforth and Seal,

Signed Sealed and Delivered.

To all people to whome these present shall come Greeting, Know ye that I Elijah Corlett of Cambridge in New England for vallewable consideration to me well & truly payd by Thomas Danforth of Cambridge aforsd to my full content & Sattisfaction before the ensealing & Delivery hereof, have granted, bargained, & Sold, and by these prsents do fully, —–, & absolutely, grant, bargaine, & Sell, alien, efeoffe & confirme unto the Said Thomas Danforth two hundred acres of land, being granted unto me by the Genrall Court & to be layd out as in the said grant if declared, To have and to hold the said land according to the grant thereof with all prviledges & appurtenance to the Same appurteyning or in any wise belonging to him the Said Thomas Danforth his Heyres & Assigns for ever, to his & their only proper use & behooffe, with out the Lawfull lett, claims, or Deniall of me the Said Eijah Corlett my Heyres, Ececutors, Administrators, or assignes, or by any other person or persons claiming by, from, or under me, In Witness whereof I the said Elijah Corlett, and also Barbora, my wife [in acknowledgement of her free consent to this my act & deed] have hereunto put our hands &

Sealed this thirteenth Day of December Anno Domini 1661.
Elijah Corlett

Signed, Sealed & dd In Presence off

Accknoledged by Mr Elijah Corlett the 6th —- month Before me, Daniel Gookin
At a Genrall Cort of Election held at Boston the 22 of may 1661 Layed out & Exactly measured By Thomas Noyes of Sudbury in Obediance to the Grant of the Hon. Genrall Court Octobr 18 1659 — Mr Elijah Corlet School Master of Cambridge his Farm of a Hundred Acres Situate Lying & being a bout a Mile Distant from the South West angle of the Land formerly granted to Sdbury Allso Haveing a Parcell of Meadow granted to Mr Edman Brown Teacher to the Church of Sedbury on the South, Allso being a bout half a mile Distant Northerly from Sudbury River Allso being about a mile and a Quarter Distant WEst North Westerly from the now Dwelling House of John Stone the sd Farm for the most part Bordering upon the Wild —- & Lying in a Long Square the Longest Lines Runing West by South 5 Degrees Southerly as is now Marked Round by marcking Trees with the Letter C & allso a small parcell of meadow Near adjoining to the South Line of Sd Farm & is part of the 2 Hundred Acres. This By me Under —- the 28th of may 1661 in presence of John Stone John Behr & Thomas Read of Sudbury.

Curator's Statement

It is likely that many people viewing this exhibit know the “Eames Massacre” (if they know it at all) as an unprovoked act of violence, but this perception is skewed, one-sided, and unfair. What has been cast as a random, brutal attack was in reality a wartime encounter between two groups of people who had known, lived with, and interacted with each other many times over the course of a decade. So how did this encounter between neighbors become deadly? And how many victims did this event really claim?

In retelling this story now, it is not my aim to condone violence or excuse murder. Rather, it is to closely examine the circumstances that surround it, and to cast light on the pieces of the story that have remained in the dark. This is an examination of the circumstances that provoke violence, the ways in which violence begets more violence, and the consequences that reverberate into modern Framingham and beyond.

The goal of this exhibit is not just to teach; it is to transport. Given how the landscape has been altered in the past 350 years, it is impossible to recreate the Framingham of the 17th century. Still, I hope the combination of objects, documents, and original artwork gives you a sense of the world Netus and Thomas Eames inhabited.

I’d like to extend my sincerest thanks to Mary McNeil, for her contributions to this exhibition, to Annie Murphy and Laura Rankin for their editing eyes, and  Alison Simmons, Maria Turner, and the Natick Nipmuc for their help at many points along the way, including offering their crucial perspective on this story and it’s echoes into the present. Thanks also to the Massachusetts State Archives and Middlesex Deeds for granting access to their collections for research and use in this exhibition.

Stacen Goldman, Curator

Land Encroachment Method 1:
Spoil the Land

The English set their livestock free to graze and root unchecked, destroying Native planting grounds and other cultivated ecosystems in the process. When Native people protested, settlers insisted that Native villages be fenced to keep the livestock out. This practice made desirable land unusable for Native people while forcing them to confine their surviving spaces within fencing, leaving adjacent lands “free” to be claimed. This demonstrates that even as the English claimed New England was wilderness, they understood how important cultivation of the land was to Native subsistence.

Land Encroachment Method 3:
Assimilate and Consolidate

The precursor to the modern Indian Reservation can be found in 17th century Praying Towns, English-style villages established by Reverend John Eliot for the conversion of local Algonquian groups, including the Nipmuc, to Christianity. Establishing these spaces allowed the English to supplant Native culture with their own and consolidate large groups of Indigenous populations within borders that the English defined themselves. The Native people who inhabited these towns were referred to as “Praying Indians.”

The land that is now Framingham had many of these Towns nearby: Natick, Magunkaquog (Ashland), Hassanamesit (Grafton), and Okommakamesit (Marlborough).

Land Encroachment Method 2: Force Debt

As soon as the English obtained any kind of written agreement from Native people, they interpreted it as Native subservience and acceptance of the English legal system. Native participants, for their part, agreed to alliances often with little understanding that this was the case.

After obtaining these agreements, English settlers forced allied Native individuals into debt, often through fraudulent means such as false imprisonment. These debts were imposed with full knowledge that the Indigenous population rarely kept English money, thus forcing them to pay in an equivalent value of land.

Hover over the map to see the Natick lands sold by Gookin and How.

Key

Modern Framingham Border

1660s Natick Border

Land sold by Gookin and How

Captain Tom Wuttasacomponum
(ca. 1625-1676)

Captain Tom, also known as “Tom Wutasakompanin,” “Wuttusacomponum” or “Wutasakompanin,” was a Nipmuc leader who probably resided at one (or both) of the “new” Praying Villages of Pakachoag or Webquassit before moving to Hassanamesit by 1674. While Annaweekin was considered the principle “ruler” of Hassanamesit, Captain Tom probably held some leadership role at Hassanamesit, and was held in high esteem by Daniel Gookin.  During King Philip’s War, Captain Tom traveled to Menimesit with his Nipmuc kin instead of being removed to Deer Island; it is unclear whether he went by choice or was forced.  Wuttusacomponum was captured by English scouts, tried for his alleged participation in attacks on settlers at Sudbury and Medfied, and hung in June of 1676.  To his death, Captain Tom swore his innocence.

Access the full list of places, secondary characters, and events in Resources.

Metacomet (1638-1676)

Metacomet, or King Philip, was the head sachem of the Wampanoag Confederacy and the namesake of King Philip’s War.  The son of Massasoit, the sachem who entered into an early alliance with Plymouth settlers, Metacomet succeeded his father and his brother, Wamsutta, after their respective deaths.  While Metacomet initially sought to maintain good relationships with settlers, deeding them land and even adopting the English name “Philip,” such “peace” was threatened by increasing settler dispossession and undermining of Wampanoag sovereignty. Shortly after settlers accused Metacomet of ordering the murder of John Sassamon, a Massachusett man who was often an interpreter for English land deals, King Philip’s War began. 

 

In 1676, Metacomet was killed in a swamp near his home village of Montaup (today often referred to as “Mount Hope” or Bristol, Rhode Island).  After his murder, Metacomet’s head was displayed on a pike in Plymouth’s town center for decades, and his wife and son were captured and sold into slavery.

Access the full list of places, secondary characters, and events in Resources.

Menimesit

Menimesit (modern Brookfield) was a stronghold and refuge place for Nipmuc people, and later their Wampanoag and Narragansett allies, during King Philip’s War.  Its name refers both to the river (today often called the Ware River), and the marshy lands and islands in and around the river.  There were three separate towns in Menimesit, and Mary Rowlandson was taken to one of them during the war.

Access the full list of places, secondary characters, and events in Resources.

Hassanamesit

Hassanamesit (Modern Grafton) was a Praying Village that was established in 1654; the name translates to “place of small stones.”  Comprised of 8000 acres of land, it was near the Old Connecticut Path and about 2 miles east of the “Nipmuck River” (today often called the Blackstone River). Hassanamesit was home to about 10 families, or 50 individuals. Among these were its “ruler,” Annaweekin (or “Annaweakin”); his brother Wawaus (or “James the Printer”), the Nipmuc man who was integral to the production of the first translated Algonquin Bible; their brother Joseph Tupukawillin (or “Tuckapa-willin”), who was a teacher; and their father, Naoas. Hassanamesit was home to the second independent congregation, which was established in 1671.  

Access the full list of places, secondary characters, and events in Resources.

Know all men by these presents that we John Awassomoag, Samuell Awassamoag, John Mooqua, Peter Ephraim & Eleazer Pegan Indians of Natick, in the County of Middlesex in New England, for reasons us thereunto mooving, Have Given & Granted, and do by these [presents do] grant, Aliene, enfeoffe, Assigne, makeover, and Confirme unto Thomas Awassamoag, Indian of the same Towne and County aforesaid all that our whole Native title, Right, & Interest in that tract of land lying sittuated and being betweene the bounds of Natick, Charles River, Marlborough and a point of Blackstone’s River beyond Mendon, al which said Right, title, & interest in the said land (that is not already legally disposed of) we the said John Awassomoag, Samuell Awassamoag, Josua Awassamoag, John Mooqua, Peter Ephraim & Eleazer Pegan, do hereby Avouch and Declare to be at the delivery of these presents our owne propper estate and Lawfully in our owne power to alienate & dispose of it being our natural right descending to us from the cheife Sachem Wuttawushan unckle to the said John Awassamoag — who was the cheife Sachem of said land and nearly related to us all as may be made to Appeare And we do further warrant and assure the said Right, title, and interest to the said Thomas  Awassamoag a good and sound estate of inheritance, to get herewith all Rights, —- appurtenances, liberties,  priviledges, uses, accomodations, profits & Comodities thereto belonging or any way appertaining to Have and to hold to him the said Thomas Awassamoag and to his heires executors administrators & Assignes —– possession for ourselves Acquitted and discharged of and from all manner of formal gifts, grants, titles, —–, mortgages, leases, entailes, and all legal molestation, interruption, and encumbrances whatsoever, from by or under us the said John Awassamoag, Samuell Awassamoage, Joshua Awassamoag, John Maqua, OEter Ephraim, & Eliazer Pigan our heires executors administrators or Assignes or any other person or persons whatsoever by from or under us or any of us. And we do further covenant and promise to do at the charge of the said Thomas Awassamoag any further Act or Acts, thing or things,  that may any way lend to the further selling and confirming of the above said Right, title, and interest to and upon the said Thomas Awassamoag his heires executors Administrators or Assignes whomsoever we are reasonably thereto requested. And we do hereby render and give secure and lawfull possession of al the said Right, title, and Interest and for the true and full performance of all singular ——- we the above named John Awassomaog, Samuell Awassamoag, Joshua Awassamoag, John Mooqua, Peter Ephraim, & Eleazer Pegan have to this Instrument set to our hand & Seales the 21 January 1684

John Mooqua (his mark) & Seale, John Awassamoag (his mark) & seale, Samu Awassamoag (his mark) & seale, Peter Ephraim & Seale

Signed Sealed & Delivered in the presence of us Edw. Wish, Benj? Learned

John Mooqua, Sam Awossomoag, Peter Ephraim appeared in Court at —- Acknowledged & testifyed to be their Act & deed they set to their hands & seales Frbr 18 1684 as Attached Daniel Gookin Seal Entered & Recorded at request of tHomas Awassomoag 26th April 1685.

 

To all People to whom these presens shall come, We Jonas and Mary Obscow of Natick in the County of Middlesex and Pricings of the Massachusetts Bay New England send Greeting.

KNOW YE that we the said Jonas and Mary Obscow in Consideration [of the] just Sum of Ten Pounds thirteen shillings and four pence to us in Hand paid before the Delivery hereof, by Peter Rice of Framignham of the County & Province aforesaid, Yeoman the Receipt whereof we do hereby acknowledge, Have given, granted, bargained, and sold, and do by these Presents, give grant, bargain, sell and convey, unto him this said Peter Rice Heirs and Assigns forever, Ten Acres of Land Lying and being in Natick Bested and Bounded as followeth. Dirs. beginning at a stake & stones at the westerly Corner thence running Southeasterly to as take & stones thence running Northeasterly to a stake & stones being Joseph Jenning Corner thence running by sd Jennings Land to a stake & stones thence running Southwesterly by Cort David Rice’s Land to a stake & stones thence running more Southerly by Caleb Drury Land to the Stake & stones first mentioned.

To have and to hold the said granted and bargained Premises together with all their Appurtenances to him the said Peter Rice his Heirs and aSsigns forever and we the said Jonas & Mary Obscow for our selves and Heirs, Executors, and Administrators, do hereby Covenant to and with the said Peter Rice that at the sealing hereof we are the lawful Owner of said granted Premises, with their Appurtenances, and stand seized thereof in our own proper Right, as a good Estate in Fee Simple, that we have lawful Right to sell the same as aforesaid, that they are free of all Encumbrances whatever. And further that our Heirs, Executors and Administrators shall and will warrant and defend said granted Premises unto the said Peter Rice his Heirs and Assigns forever, against the Claims of any PErson or PErsons whatsoever.

In Witness whereofe we the said Jonas & Mary Obscow have hereunto set our Hands and Seals this ninth Day of September, Anno Somini, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Seventy Two and in the Twelfth Year of His Majesty’s Reign.

Jonas Obscow

Mary Xhermark Obscow

Signed, Sealed and Delivered in Presence of us,

Asa Drury, Caleb Drury

Middlesex Nov 27 1773, The above-named Jonas Obscow & Mary Obscow personally appeared and owned this Instrument to be free Act and Deed before Jos. Buckminster, Just. Pacis.

Consented to by Abraham Bigelow Eleazer Kingsbury, Guardians to the Natick Indians

To all people to whom these presents shall come greeting, know yee that wee Waban, Pyambow, Tom Tray, John Magos, Peter Ephraim, John Awassamug, John Masqua, all now Inhabitants of Natick for an in consideration of a valuable summ of mony served to be paid to us, By Samuell Gookin of Cambridge and Samuell How of Sudbury, doe with the Consul and appelation of the rest of the peoprioters[sic], By these presents,  acknowledge to be fully sattisfied and Contented and thereof and of Entry part and parcell – thereof doe fully, clearely, and absolutely acquitt, exonnorate, and discharge them the Said Samuell Gookin and Samuell How there heires executors and Assignes, for life by these presents, Have Granted, Bargained, and Sold Asigned, Efeoffed, & Confirmed and by these presents, doe fully clearely and absolutely, grant Bargain and sell adjoine and efeoffe and confirme unto the said Samuell Gookin and Samuell How a parcill of land lying and being in the bounds of Natick Conteyning by estimation two hundred acres more or lesse, bounded w the Sherborne line southerly, with John Bout and David Jones(?) land westerly, Henry Rices land and Cuchuit pond Easterly,  an

To start and to hold the above granted premises be the same more or lesse, with all the priviledges and appurtenances to the sae appor—-ing, or in any wise belonging to them the said Samuell Gookin and Samuell How there heires and Assignes, forever, to Have only propper — and bennifit And we the above said Waban, Pyambow, Tom Tray, John Magos, Peter, John Awassamug, for us our heires Administrators and Assignes, doe Covenant promise and grant to and with the said Samuell Gookin and Samuell How there heires and Assignes by these presents that they the said Samuell Gookin and Samuell How shall and may at all times and from time to time for ever hereafter privately(?) and quickly have, hold, occupy, and enjoy the above Granted and bargained premises with all the priviledges and Appurtenances thereunto belonging without the —- denyall or Contradiction of us Waban, Pyambow, Tom Tray, John Magos, Peter Ephraim, John Awassamug, John Marqua, our heires —- administrators or Assignes of them or either of them or by any of the person or persons whatsoever, lawfully clayming or having any right — or —— therein, or in any part or parcell thereof by from or under us. In witness hereof wee the above named Waban, Pyambow, Tom Tray, John Magos, Peter Ephraim, John Awassamug, John Marqua hereunto put our hands and seales this 19th day of May 1682.

John Magos (seal)        Waban (seal)
Tho. Waban (seal)       Pyambow (seal)
John Marqua (seal)       Tom Tray (seal)

Waban, Pyambow, John Magos, Thomas Waban, & John Marqua personally Appearing Acknowledged this deed May [19 1]682 before me William Stoughton.

Sealed & delivered in the presence of Edw. Wist, Thomas Sawin.
The Court 27th of may 82 pass there Allowance & Confirmation of this deed.
Committees Survey of the Lands in and about Natick, claimed by Samuel Gookin and How, returned Feb. 11, 1696.

The persons that purchased land of Gookin and How
Nathaniel Stone   5 a
David Rice   7 a
David Stone   12 a
Thomas Drury   9 a
Thomas Walker   12 a
John How   34 a
John Adams   12 a
Matthew Rice   60 a
John Bent   3 a
Widow Pratt   7 a

To the Honorable General Court now sitting – We whose names are under written, by order of this Court bearing date December 13, 1695, being ordered to survey the Land in Natick Township claimed by Mr. Samuel Gookin of Cambridge & Samuel How of Sudbury:  we have accordingly measured said land, & we find of the Land which said Gookin & How have sold and disposed of To several persons, 1700 acres full measure, which by information that we have had, the said Gookin & How have sold to the value of 156 pounds, which we account the full value of said land. We have also measured the land betwixt the aforesaid land and Sherborn line, which we have been informed has been claimed by said Gookin and How, and not disposed of, which we find to measure 1000 acres, which we value to be worth 60 pounds of which we have herein drawn a plot of the lines thereof.

We have also set out to the said Gookin and How 200 acres, according to the General Courts order, adjoining the Sudbury River at a place called Indian Head.

We have also propounded to the several persons that have purchased land of the said Gookin and How to pay something to the Indians for a confirmation of this title, but they refuse to do any thing because they have paid to the full value already as their deeds from Gookin and How will show.

Further we did notify Mr. Samuel Gookin and Mr. Samuel How of the Courts order and the time of our meeting at Natick to do the above said work.

Surveyed in January 1696,
By David Fisk
Joseph Morse
Joseph Sherman

Thomas Sawin attorney for the Indians at Natick is willing that the land next to Sherborn should pay for this survey – which charge is fifteen pounds money.

When the Indians came to our towne of Medfield, and were partly about my hosue in the fyring of it & partly betwixt my house & Thomas Ellico a bout 30 rod, I thought I ded heare the very reall voice of Captain Tom. Such a voice as I have heard when once he came with his Natick Souldiers to Medfeild & Comanded them. — I have heard him pronounce at Natick this is all I Can Say. Attached by me John Partridge J.

Joseph Indian, sonne of William of Mogoncoke being Examined do say & confess that Himself with those others named in the margent were the persons that destroyed Thomas Eames family at the begin of Feb. last. That the Same was occasioned by their missing of Corn that they Expected to have found at magunkcooke & by that means was provoaked to come & do that spoyle, Killing of some & carrying captive the rest, & burning house barn & cattel, & do confesse that he himself caryed away on his back one of Eames sons. Also he saith of about 2: mo since he inquired to —– Gm Eames 2 daughters & understood they were at a great Hill, abt midway between Watchusset & Penacooke. & were in good health, & not in a starving plight.

Apumatquin als. Jno being Examind do confirm the Same thing as above to be the truth. Only he saith he knows nothing how it is with Gm Eames daughters at present not having heard lately anything to regarding them.

Wm Jackstraw being examed do confesse the Same thing as above. Ownes That his sonnes Joseph & Jon above examined were present at the desolation of Gm Eames family & that himself was of the company, but kept at a distance a little off in the corn field.

Isaac Beech being prest and – exam do say that Joseph abovenamed confessed the same thing to himself and Jno Prentis.

For encouragement to Joseph who was 1st  examined to tell that truth (they at first Denying all) I told him I would speak to the Govr to spare his life in case he would tell me plainly how all the Said matter was acted. Taken the day & year above Befoer Thos Danforth.

Jno Speen Interpreter

Confessions were owned by the prison at the Barr: 18 — E. R. S.

Upper left corner (“Margent” referenced above):

Netus, dead.

& his wife, sold.

Anneweekin. Dead.

1 aponapawquin alias Jacob

1 Acompanatt alias James “ Philip

X Pakanawingginguit. Joshua Assatt

                              With Captain Hunting?

Apunatquin als. John

X William —

X Joseph

Pumapono. Of Quabaug

& his sonne abt 40 years old.

Awassaquah. V. at Ponds sick,

Of naskawag —-

The wife of Aquitakash & is sold already

Reverse: Wm Jackstraw saith that Mattahump hath one of Gm Eames daughters & Pumapen the other & they were alive at planting time and he thinks they may yet be toward the field of Auranea but —- ——-.

To the Honourable Court of Assistants sitting at Boston, September the 5th 1676 the humble Petition of William Wannuckhow, Joseph Wannuckhow, & John Appamatahquo, all Prisoners at the Barr —

Humbly imploreth your favor to hear & concider our supplication: wee Know that your honours are men of truth, fearing God, and will faithfully perform your promises, Especially when it concernes so great a matter as the lives of men, you were pleased (of your own benignity, not for any deserts of ours) to give forth your decalration dated the 19th of June where in your word pleased to promise Life and Liberty unto such of your enemies as did come in and submit themselves to your mercy and order and Disposal within a time limitted where afterward was Enlarged to a longer time, and tidings thereof sent by James Pretice until us, which offers of grace, as soone as we heard of it, we Redily Embraced it and came in accordingly our selfs, wifes, and children (as Capt Prentis and his son ^with others to whose house we were directed to come; areRedy to testifie, and those order of yours are upon Record Copies whereof we are Redy to Present If it should be said that we are Known to Be notorious in dooing mischif to the English, we answer, non can so say in truth, or prove any such thing against us, Indeed we doo acknowledge that we were in Company of those That Burn Goodman Eames his house, But we did not act in it, it was done by others, who are slain in the warrs, and so have answerd God’s justice for there demerits, as for our part, we Came along with that company upon a nessesary and Just occation, to get our corn that we had planted gathered and put up at magungoog, But finding our Corn taken away we Intended to Return, But Naotus and an other Man that were our leaders, Ernestly Moved to go to Goodman Eames farm for to get Corn and they Said they did Believe he had taken our Corn But we were untilling to goo; But they By their porswaision and threatening caried us wih them. Bust as we said Before we neither Kild nor Burnd nore take away and thing there, But were INstrumental to save Goodman Eames his Children alive, on of use Carried one boy ^up on our Backs Rathern than let them Be Killed, This is the truth of things so that we Cannot be Reckoned among suck as have Been notorious in dooing Mischeefe, INdeed we were among the enimies, Being tempted to goo among them By the example of our Chiefe men Capt. Tom and others But we had not armes nor did not hurt the English as many others have done, That upon there submission to your Mercy are pardoned, BEsides it was a tiem of Warr When this Mischife was done and though it was our unhappy Portion to Be with Enimis, yet we conceive that deppredations and Slaughters in warr are not Chargable upon Pirticular persons, Espicially such as have Submited them SElves to your honours upon promis of life as we have done, Therefore we desire again to Insist upon the plea, that we may Received the Benifit of your declarations BEfor mentioned for our lives will not be at all Benifialc to Goodman Eams, Thos that Slew his wife & Relations and Burn his House, have already Suffered death, and the Sattisfaction of Goodman Eams in our death will not Countervail the Honor & Justice or Authority of the Country that may be Blemished thereby ——

There fore, Let it Pleas your Hons to Concider the promises and graunt us our Lives as you have Promised which will Ever oblige us to Be your Most faithfull Subjects & Servants. The Marks of

William Wannukhow

Joseph Wannukhow

John Appamatahquo

Upon consideration of the great danger and Inconvenience both English and Friend-Indians are exposed unto, during the present War with the Eastern Indians: It being very difficult to discern between Friends & Foes

This Courth doth Order and Appoint that all the Indians inhabiting this Colony, in Amity with us, do forthwith repair to the Towns of Natick and Punckapaug, and dwell there; not transgressing the limits of their Town; and such as are not abroad, are forthwith to return within any of our Towns, excepting only those who are constant Dwellers in English Houses.[1] Provided the Indian Women and Children be not hereby refrained from frequenting the Flats where they have been accustomed to get Clams; nor the Indians from fishing at the Lower Falls of Charles Riverm and at Neponset mill. And for the better encouragement of the Inhabitants of Natick & Punckapaug to abide in their Habitations and to plant they are to be assisted in drawing Timber to build a Fort in each Town; the charge of which is to be defrayed by the Treasurer. And Capt Thomas Prentis, Lieut. Thomas Swift, and Capt Noah Wiswall are desired and impowered to take effctual care for the settlement and Regulation of the Indians according to the true Intent of this Order, and are to appoint two meet persons to reside at Natick & one at Punckapaug, who are to call over the Names of the Indians ^men&women morning & evening, and to do what else shall be found necessary & expedient to this affair.

Voted in the Affirmative by
the Magistrates
Jsa Addington Secry

[1] This is a reference primarily to Native people who were enslaved.

The the Indian Constable of whipsuffrage or his deputy you are required to attach the goods of Nettus Indian of nipnaps to the vallew of four pounds 17 shillings and he so forth(?) brings his body to appear at the next County Court holding at Cambridge then and there to answer the complaynts of Sargent John Parmenter of Sudbury for not paying a debt due to him the sayd John Parmenter of four pounds and etca of not to tayk and so to make to him valew of your land.

dated this 2nd of September 1659
By the Court
Thomas Noyes

This witnesseth that William Boman, Capt. Josiah, Roger, & James, and ^Keaquisan Indians, now living at Naticke the Indian Plantation neare Sudbury in the Massachusetts Bay in New England, ffor and in consideration of a valuable sume of Peage[1] and other goodes to us in hand paid by John Stone of Sudbury aforenamed to our full content & satisfaction, before the signing and delivery hereof have given, granted, bargained & sould, assigned, enfeoffed[2] & confirmed, and by theis presents do give, grant, bargain & sell, assigne, enfeoffe and confirme unto the said Jno. Stone, his Heyres & assignes, a parcell of Broaken up and ffenced in land, lying on the South side of Sudbury line, upon the Falls of Sudbury River, and bounded with the Common land surrounding. The said land conteyning by estimation about ten Acres more or lesse. To have & to hould the said land with the ffences and all other the privileges and Appurtenances thereof be the same more or lesse, to him the said Jno. Stone, his Heyres and Assignes forever, to his and their only proper use & behooffe[3]. In witness whereof wee the above named Indians have hereunto put our hands & seales this 15th day of May 1656.

                                                                     Mark is of

Signed & Sealed                                           William Boman

In presence of :                                            Capt. Josiah

William W_________                                       Roger

His              mark                                         James

John Braddock                                             Keaquisan

This deed of sale was acknowledge by the Indians above named, and with their full consent the said land is passed over the 15th of : 3. mo. 1656.

Daniel Gookin

[1] Less common word for Wampum

[2] Invest in land

[3] Benefit, advantage

A Note on Terminology

Whenever possible, Native people are referred to individually by name or by tribal affiliation, and not by the term “Indian.” There are two exceptions to this rule:

The first is when using direct quotes from historical figures. These quotes also sometimes use outdated and harmful words that are never acceptable to use when referring to Native people today.

The second is the use of the term “Praying Indians,” specifically meant to refer to the Native people who settled in the Praying Towns established by Reverend John Eliot. These were people from different tribal and kinship groups who convened to cohabitate in these spaces, and who were treated as a single group  by the English. “Praying Indians” is currently the widely accepted term when referring to Native Converts who lived in these English spaces as a group.

Hover over the map to see the Natick lands the Eames family took posession of in the 25 years following the end of King Philip’s War.

Key

Original Eames House

Modern Framingham Border

Wayte’s Grant

 Waushakamaug

1660s Natick Border

Land acquired by Eames Family

William Wannukhow
(ca. 1620-1676)

William Wannukhow, also known as William Jackstraw, was a Nipmuc man who converted to Christianity sometime before 1660. In the period leading up to King Philip’s War, Wannukhow lived with his family in the small Praying Town of Magunkaquog. Wannukhow and his family would have been very familiar with both Thomas Eames, who was responsible for laying out the land for the planting grounds and granaries at Magunkaquog, and Netus, who worshipped with them at Natick (Magunkaquog had no church of its own).

Wannukhow and his family were forced to evacuate Magunkaquog for the larger Praying Town of Hassanamesit by the Massachusetts General Court in the fall of 1675. Hassanamesit was taken by Metacom-allied Nipmucs later that fall, at which point all the Christian inhabitants, including the Wannukhows, traveled with Metacom’s allies (whether by choice or by force is unclear) to the Nipmuc stronghold of Menimesit. Wannukhow and his adult sons, Joseph and John, were present at the time of the fight at the Eames homestead, and their testimony is the only first-hand account of that event.

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Annaweekin (ca. 1635-1676)

Annaweekin was  the son of the Nipmuc deacon Naoas and the Sachem of Hassanamesit at the time of King Philip’s War. Annaweekin’s younger brothers Job Kattenanit and James Printer (Wawaus), were sent to be educated by Elijah Corlett while Annaweekin, who was the eldest, was kept home to be educated by the local Nipmuc schoolteacher. James was an integral player in the creation of the first Algonquian Bible and was a sometimes-scout for the English during the war, though he also spent time supporting his Nipmuc kin who were allied with Metacom. Job was interned on Deer Island, and was offered passage back to the mainland by Daniel Gookin if he agreed to act as a scout for the English, which he did throughout the war. These three brothers illustrate the different and complicated personal choices that even the closest of Native kinsmen would make during King Phillip’s War. 

Annaweekin and his brothers were contemporaries of Netus’s son, who was also sent to be educated by Elijah Corlett. He would have known Netus well, as the older man lived and owned land at Hassanamesit during his childhood. The men were all a part of a relatively small network of Christian Nipmuc and it is little surprise that Annaweekin and Netus would join together in the party to retrieve corn from Magunkaquog. William Wannukhow and his sons later named Annaweekin as the second leader of the raid on the Eames house alongside Netus. This may have been an accusation of convenience, as Annaweekin died in battle sometime in the spring of 1676, months before the Wannukhows were examined about their role in the altercation on Mount Wayte.

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Thomas Danforth (1623-1699)

Perhaps the person with the strongest stamp on the shape of modern Framingham was Thomas Danforth. Born in Framlingham, England, Danforth settled in Cambridge with his father at the age of 11. Danforth’s father, Nicholas, was a prominent civic leader who served on the Massachusetts General Court. The adult Danforth would follow in his father’s footsteps, serving for twenty years (1659-1678) on the Court of Assistants (the equivalent to the modern State Senate). Danforth also served as the Treasurer and then Steward and Inspector of Economical Affairs for Harvard College. In the period after King Philip’s War, Danforth would become Deputy Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the President of the Province of Maine, and eventually an Associate Judge of the Superior Court, in which capacity he would play a role in the Salem Witch Trials. 

Throughout the 1660s, Danforth was granted the first 250 acres of unceded Nipmuc land in the bounds of modern Framingham by the General Court as payment for his services to the colony. Over the next three decades, Danforth would amass nearly 15,000 acres of land. This land was initially called Danforth’s Farms, but would later be renamed Framingham, in honor of Danforth’s birthplace. Danforth never lived, or by any accounts set foot on his land, though he did, on multiple occasions, grant settlers permission to take up residence on it over the course of his lifetime.

Though there is evidence that Danforth did receive quitclaim deeds from the Nipmuc for some parcels of his land, it is not clear that he did so for the entirety of his holdings, and some of the land that comprises modern Framingham is likely still unceded today.

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Elijah Corlett (1609-1686)

Elijah Corlett was a teacher and the founder of the Cambridge Latin School. Many of his pupils made up the earliest students of Harvard College, which the Latin School was adjacent to. Cambridge Latin, along with John Eliot’s Roxbury Latin, was also responsible for the education of many converted Algonquian men, usually with an eye towards their enrollment in Harvard Indian College. Corlett educated many young converts, and, as was evidenced by his interactions with Netus, used this as an opportunity to increase his land holdings throughout the colony, essentially becoming a land speculator in addition to a schoolmaster. In 1659, Corlett petitioned the Massachusetts General Court for land as recognition of his services, and was granted 200 acres of land in modern Framingham. This land directly abutted the parcel that John Stone purchased from 5 Nipmuc men 3 years earlier, as well as a piece of meadow belonging to Reverend Edmund Browne of Sudbury. Sometime around 1658, Netus signed over 3 acres of meadow to Reverend Browne, possibly in payment for a debt. The exact location of this meadow is unknown, but it is possible that this same piece of land was the piece abutting Corlett’s grant. Four years later, Corlett would sue Netus for his land holdings in Grafton as payment for educating Netus’s son. Corlett likely never saw either of these parcels in person, but he did sell the Framingham land for an unspecified sum and the Grafton land at  £30, nearly 4 times more than the £7.10 that he originally sued Netus for.

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Daniel Gookin (1612-1687)

Daniel Gookin was the first superintendent to the Praying Indians in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In this capacity, he aided Reverend John Eliot with the establishment of the Praying Towns and was an official government liaison to the Praying Indians within the Colony. He wrote two histories of Native peoples in New England, Historical Collections of the Indians in New England (1674), and The Doings and Sufferings of the Christian Indians (1677). These two documents sandwich King Philip’s War and are an important window into the drastic ways the Massachusetts Bay’s relationship with Native New Englanders drastically changed within just a few short years.

Gookin and Eliot were two of the only advocates for the Praying Indians during King Philip’s War, though their advocacy did not result in better treatment by other colonial officials. Gookin was an incredibly complicated figure. His sympathy to the plight of the Praying Indians made him unpopular among the other English, and even cost him political appointments and elections, but his advocacy was stilted, and did not extend to those who had not converted to Christianity. In fact, his advocacy was sometimes non-existent, and – even at its strongest – was not usually enough to save lives. 

After the war, Gookin’s son, Samuel, was a land speculator who purchased 200 acres of land from the people of Natick around 1696. He and his partner then sold nearly nine times that much land to English settlers, prompting a legal battle from Natick.

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Reverend John Eliot (1604-1690)

John Eliot was a missionary and the founder of Roxbury Latin School. Eliot’s ministry was focused on the conversion of various Algonquian peoples to Christianity. The cornerstone of this ministry was an Algonquian translation of the Bible, which was made possible by some of his earliest converts. Dreaming of established towns where converts could settle and form Christian villages in the English style, Eliot petitioned the Massachusetts General Court for lands to establish a “Praying Plantation,” where educated and trained Algonquian peoples would preach and teach the next generation of “Praying Indians.”

In 1650, the General Court granted Eliot 2,000 acres to establish the first of these towns at Natick. He would follow this with 13 more such villages around the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and would encourage the Christian education of the young men who grew up within these villages. 

During King Philip’s War, Eliot, along with Daniel Gookin, frequently advocated for the Praying Indians and other Native allies who came under the purview of the English, though his protestations against their unjust treatment did not always prove to be particularly strong. Ultimately, he did not hold (or did not wish to hold) very much sway over the official actions of the Colonial government and many of the people whom he had converted were killed in battle, hanged, interned, or sold into slavery.

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Tantamous (ca. 1590-1676)

Tantamous, also called Old Jethro, was a Nipmuc spiritual leader who lived with his family on Nobscot Hill, which straddles the border between modern Framingham and Sudbury. Though Tantamous never converted to Christianity, he did regular business with the English, and at the outbreak of war in the Spring of 1675, made the decision to ally himself with the English and move to Natick for protection, perhaps because his son, Hantomush (Peter Jethro), was a Christian convert already living there. The protection that he expected in Natick did not materialize, and just months after his relocation there, the General Court confined all inhabitants of Praying Towns to within a mile of their village. This was soon followed by the forced relocation of the inhabitants of Natick to Deer Island. Tantamous and his family joined Netus and others, fleeing westward. While Netus would return to the area around Framingham and Natick, eventually taking up arms against the English, Tantamous settled with his family near Wachusett to wait out the war. He never seems to have participated in the conflict on either side, though his son, Hantomush, would side with the English, serving as a scout and spy for their forces. In late August or early September of 1676, Tantamous was convinced to deliver himself to the English, with the understanding that his son had secured amnesty for his family. This protection, once again, failed to materialize and he was hanged on Boston Common, September 26, 1676. His remaining family was sold into slavery.

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Pequot War

The Pequot War of 1636-1638 was a colonial war between the Pequot Nation, English settlers, and settler-allies from the Narragansett and Mohegan Nations.  Characterized as one of the first American “Indian Wars,” it emerged in the wake of increasing acts of aggression from New England settlers, including attempts to extract indemnity payments from the Pequot Nation and to capture Pequot children and place them in indentured servitude. Settler aggression reached an apex after a company of soldiers that had been sent to Pequot country to search for the alleged killer of English settler John Stone went on the offensive. In public memory, the war ended with the 1637 massacre of hundreds of Pequot men, women, and children at a Pequot village near the Mystic River. However, the war officially ended in 1638, with the Treaty of Hartford. Although settler lore pronounced the Pequot Nation “extinct” due to the English victory, the Pequot Nation is still very much alive. Descendants comprise the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and the Eastern Pequot Nation, and are also part of the Brothertown Indian Nation in Wisconsin.

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Deer Island

Deer Island is a Boston Harbor island that was used by the Massachusetts Bay Colony to intern “Praying Indians” from Nipmuc country during King Philip’s War. Internment came in the wake of growing restrictions on Indigenous mobility throughout the region and mounting settler anxieties. Hundreds of Indigenous persons were moved to Deer Island and other Boston Harbor islands during the winter of 1675; there, they were not provided with adequate food stores and supplies, and were exposed to the harsh winter elements. At least one historian estimates that half of the total population of people interned on Deer Island died during the winter of 1675/1676. Today, members of the Nipmuc Nation organize an annual sacred paddle to Deer Island to return to their ancestors and remember them. 

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Waushakamaug

According to historian Stephen Herring, Waushakamaug was “probably the largest Nipmuc settlement within the bounds of today’s Framingham.”  Waushakamaug was situated near the 90-acre Waushakum Pond, and its name is said to translate in Nipmuc to “eel-fishing place.”  While many historians suggest that Nipmuc people “abandoned” their villages by the time that settlers began to establish Framingham, Waushakamaug was almost certainly still considered to be a site of deep meaning and importance to members of the Nipmuc Nation, particularly due to the pond’s abundance of eels, a traditional staple in Nipmuc diets. Thomas Eames established his homestead on unceded land that comprised part of the village of Washakamaug, and Josiah H. Temple, in his History of Framingham Massachusetts, indicates that Eames in fact placed his home on an active seasonal village site, which Eames then destroyed. The last known Nipmuc Sachem at Waushakamaug was Wuttuwushan, whose descendants lived in Natick and sold their remaining land holdings off to descendants of Thomas Eames in the early 18th century.

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Okommakamesit

Okommakamesit (Modern Marlborough) was a Praying Village established in 1654 on land that, according to Daniel Gookin, comprised approximately 6000 acres.  It was located about 12 miles Northeast of Hassanamesit, and had about 10 families, or 50 individuals, in residence.  Historically, Okommakamesit has been falsely conflated with the nearby settler town of Marlborough, which was officially incorporated as a town in 1660.  This is because during King Philip’s War, residents of Okommakamesit moved into Marlborough, probably to alleviate settler suspicion. This did not prevent them from being removed and interned on Deer Island in 1675, at which point the settlers of Marlborough commandeered the land comprising Okommakamesit to incorporate into their own town.

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Natick

In 1651, Reverend John Eliot established Natick, the first and largest Praying Village, on 2000 acres of land “granted” to him by the Massachusetts Bay General Court. With an additional land grant in 1659, the village expanded to 6000 acres. Natick was largely comprised of people from the Massachusett and Nipmuc Nations, and an estimated 29 families, or 145 individuals, lived at Natick in 1674. Natick was one of two Praying Villages to have its own independent congregation.

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Magunkaquog

Magunkaquog (modern Ashland), also known as “Magunkoag” or “Magunkog,” was a Praying Village located halfway between Natick and Hassanamesit.  About 11 families, or 55 individuals, lived at Magunkaquog.  Inhabitants of Magunkaquog worshipped at Natick, and Magunkaquoag was considered to be the last of the “original” Praying Villages.

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Praying Towns

Praying Villages, also known as “Praying Towns,” were a network of at least 14 communities within the bounds of what settlers called the Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, and Connecticut colonies. Started by John Eliot in the mid-17th century, they were living settlements for Indigenous people that had converted to Christianity.  While living within such villages, “Praying Indians,” as they were often referred to, were expected to practice Christianity, adopt English agricultural practices, and comport themselves according to English gender norms and modes of dress. 

While inhabitants of Praying Villages were considered wards of the colony, numerous scholars have challenged the notion that these individuals and families were fully assimilated or had fully accepted settler rule.  Such scholars situate Indigenous people’s habitation in Praying Villages as a survival strategy in the face of growing settler aggression and land encroachment, and underscore the fact that many “Praying Indians” kept language, culture, and kinship ties alive.  

The Praying Villages discussed in this exhibit were located in Nipmuc country, although inhabitants also came from neighboring Indigenous nations.

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Test Definition

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