Indigenous peoples of Maryland

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Maryland Indigenous tribal areas prior to European arrival - red is Algonquian, green is Iroquoian, blue is Siouan. Maryland Indigenous Tribes.svg
Maryland Indigenous tribal areas prior to European arrival – red is Algonquian, green is Iroquoian, blue is Siouan.

The Indigenous peoples of Maryland are the tribes who historically and currently live in the land that is now the State of Maryland in the United States of America. These tribes belong to the Northeastern Woodlands, a cultural region.

Contents

Only 2% of the state's population self-reported as having Native American ancestry in the 2020 US census. Many of these individuals belong to Native American tribes and Indigenous peoples of the Americas whose territory is outside of Maryland.

Indigenous peoples have inhabited the area at least since c. 10,000 BC. In 1608, Captain John Smith first made contact with tribes in the Chesapeake Bay. European settlers first settled in Maryland in 1634, but as the century progressed, violence and hostility between Indigenous peoples and European settlers increased. Various treaties and reservations were established in 17th and 18th century, but many Native peoples left the area in the mid-to-late 18th century. Today, individual Native Americans live throughout the state, including a sizable Lumbee population in Baltimore.

Most of the historical Native American population in Maryland was composed of Algonquian and Iroquoian peoples, with a smaller Siouan-speaking population emigrating to the area in the mid-18th century. Many of these peoples assimilated into mainstream society or moved to the Great Lakes region or Oklahoma as part of widespread Indian removal efforts in the 19th century.

Maryland has no federally recognized tribes, but the state recognizes three tribes: the Piscataway-Conoy Tribe of Maryland, the Piscataway Indian Nation and Tayac Territory, and the Accohannock Indian Tribe. A state commission on Indian Affairs serves eight unrecognized tribes.

History

Precontact

Paleo-Indians inhabited Maryland beginning in c. 10,000 BC as the Pleistocene ice sheet retreated, [1] having come from other areas of North America to hunt.

Members of the Monongahela culture lived in the western portion of Maryland, constructing sites such as the Barton Village Site and Meyer Site. Evidence found at the Barton Village Site suggests that the area was occupied from c. AD 1000 to 1500. [2]

17th century

Map of the Chesapeake Bay by John Smith, 1612 Chesapeake Bay Map 1612.tif
Map of the Chesapeake Bay by John Smith, 1612

Captain John Smith explored and mapped the Chesapeake Bay and its surrounding area from 1607 to 1609, interacting with several Native American groups along the way. On his 1607 voyage, Smith was captured near the Chickahominy River in Virginia and taken to Powhatan. While in captivity, he learned and recorded a significant amount about the lifestyle, language, and politics of the local Native Americans. [3]

The first European settlers in Maryland founded the settlement of St. Mary's City after arriving at St. Clement's Island in 1634. [4] This land was purchased by Leonard Calvert from the Yaocomico people, who inhabited the site prior to colonial arrival. [5] This was a largely peaceful interaction, with the two groups sharing the settlement until the Yaocomico left at the end of the growing season. [5]

In 1659, Colonel Edmund Scarborough led a series of unprovoked raids against the previously peaceful Assateague people. Referred to as the "Seaside War of 1659," this series of raids increased natives' hostility towards European settlers. [6]

Several treaties were signed between Maryland Colony and various local Native American peoples after 1650, including the Assateagues, Nanticokes, and Susquehannocks. [7] Various Native American reservations were also established during this period, including Askiminokonson. [7]

18th century

Treaties between settlers and Native Americans continued in the 18th century, with roughly 3,000 acres being set aside by the colony as Native American reservations. [8]

In June 1744, the leaders of the Six Nations gave up all of their claims within the colony. [9]

The Nanticoke tribe relinquished their land in June 1768, with the General Assembly's records stating that "they are desirous of totally leaving this Province and going to live with their Brethren who have incorporated themselves with the Six Nations." [10]

19th century

The Nanticoke tribe was recognized by Maryland in 1881 as a legal entity. [8]

20th century

In the mid-20th century, a community of about 7,000 Lumbee people from North Carolina moved to the Upper Fell's Point and Washington Hill neighborhoods in Baltimore. [11] Members of the Lumbee community founded the Baltimore American Indian Center in 1968 as the American Indian Study Center to assist Native American residents in the area. [12]

21st century

In the 2010 census, about 20,000 Maryland residents, or 0.4% of the state, self-reported American Indian as their only race. More than 50,000 people in Maryland self-identified as being at least part American Indian, constituting 1.0% of the total state population. [13] That number jumped by 119% to over 120,000 in the 2020 census, representing 2% of the total state population. [11] This increase, following a nationwide trend, is attributed for many factors, including Hispanic and Latino Americans increasingly identifying as Indigenous, [14] people with blood myths of Native identity now self-identifying as being Native (particularly Cherokee descent), [14] grassroots community documentation work and decolonization efforts aimed at removing a stigma surrounding Indigenous family history. The largest Maryland Native American populations reported in the 2020 census were in Baltimore City and Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Montgomery, and Prince George's counties. [11]

Historical Indigenous peoples

Prior to European arrival and the subsequent removal of Indigenous people from the area, Native Americans occupied most of modern-day Maryland. The three main groups in the area were the Algonquian, Iroquois, and Siouan language-peoples peoples. [15] Native American territorial boundaries were fluid during this period, with groups often sharing territory and moving regularly. [16]

Algonquian

A large Algonquian population lived within Maryland before European contact. These Algonquian peoples were coastal, often living off the waters of the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean. Most Algonquians left the area by the 18th century. [15]

Choptank

The Choptank people lived in modern-day Talbot, Dorchester, and Caroline counties, including the town of Cambridge. They were the only Indigenous group granted a reservation by the Maryland colony, which they lived on until the land was sold to developers by the government in 1822. [17]

Lenape

Some Lenape, or Delaware, people lived in modern-day Cecil County. Like many other Lenape, most of these residents were forced to Indian Territory by the 1850s. [15]

Matapeake

The Matapeake people lived on Kent Island and had contact with William Claiborne in 1631. [17] Due to European encroachment on the island in the 17th and 18th centuries, many Matapeake left and assimilated into other Algonquian peoples. [15]

Nanticoke

The Nanticoke people inhabited much of the Delmarva Peninsula, including modern-day Salisbury and Princess Anne. A member of the Powhatan Confederacy, the Nanticoke were named "Kuskarawaok" by John Smith in 1608. Most Nanticoke left Maryland by the 1750s, with others assimilating into European society in the area. [15]

Iroquois

Most Iroquois language-speaking peoples lives north of Maryland, but three groups had a significant presence in the area. [15]

Massawomeck

The Massawomeck's presence in Maryland was mostly within modern-day Allegany County and Garrett County. They conducted raids against the western Maryland Algonquians and traded heavily with other Native peoples and Europeans. The group's fate is largely unknown, disappearing from historical record in 1635. [17]

Susquehannock

The Susquehannock people were present in modern-day Allegany, Cecil, and Harford counties. After warring with Maryland colony from 1642 to 1652, the group signed a peace agreement that gave much of the land south of the mouth of the Susquehanna River to Maryland. This effectively ended the people's presence in Maryland. [15]

Tuscarora

The Tuscarora people emigrated to Maryland after losing the Tuscarora War, in which they lost much of their land to North Carolinian settlers. Their presence was short-lived, with the people passing through Frederick County from 1719 to 1721. The group ultimately settled in the Great Lakes Region and became a member of the Iroquois Six Nation Confederation. [17]

Siouan

John Smith did not encounter any Siouan language-speaking tribes 1608 exploration. However, the Monacan, Saponi, and Tutelo peoples emigrated through Maryland during the mid-19th century.[ citation needed ] Some small bands of the Saponi and Tutelo were found in the area following this emigration.[ citation needed ] The Saponi band settled in Dorchester County, with both groups likely later assimilating into the local Nanticoke population. [15] [ failed verification ]

Federal recognition

There are no federally recognized tribes within Maryland. However, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 requires the State of Maryland to consult with federally recognized Native American tribes on all projects that could affect historic tribal lands or other properties with cultural or religious significance to Native nations. [18]

Federally recognized tribes with historic ties to Maryland are:

State recognition

Three tribes are state-recognized by the State of Maryland: [20]

Self-identified organizations

Numerous organizations in Maryland are self-identified tribes and cultural heritage groups who often form nonprofit organizations. In addition to the three state-recognized tribes, the Maryland Commission on Indian Affairs also works with these organizations:

Related Research Articles

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State-recognized tribes in the United States are organizations that identify as Native American tribes or heritage groups that do not meet the criteria for federally recognized Indian tribes but have been recognized by a process established under assorted state government laws for varying purposes or by governor's executive orders. State recognition does not dictate whether or not they are recognized as Native American tribes by continually existing tribal nations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nanticoke people</span> Native American people

The Nanticoke people are a Native American Algonquian people, whose traditional homelands are in Chesapeake Bay and Delaware. Today they live in the Northeastern United States and Canada, especially Delaware; in Ontario; and in Oklahoma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands</span> Native peoples in Eastern Canada and Northeastern United States

Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands include Native American tribes and First Nation bands residing in or originating from a cultural area encompassing the northeastern and Midwest United States and southeastern Canada. It is part of a broader grouping known as the Eastern Woodlands. The Northeastern Woodlands is divided into three major areas: the Coastal, Saint Lawrence Lowlands, and Great Lakes-Riverine zones.

Turkey Tayac, legally Philip Sheridan Proctor (1895–1978), was a Piscataway leader and herbal medicine practitioner; he was notable in Native American activism for tribal and cultural revival in the 20th century. He had some knowledge of the Piscataway language and was consulted by the Algonquian linguist, Ives Goddard, as well as Julian Granberry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piscataway Indian Nation and Tayac Territory</span> State-recognized tribe in Maryland that claims descent from the historic Piscataway tribe

The Piscataway Indian Nation, also called Piscatawa, is a state-recognized tribe in Maryland that is descended from the historic Piscataway people. At the time of European encounter, the Piscataway was one of the most populous and powerful Native polities of the Chesapeake Bay region, with a territory on the north side of the Potomac River. By the early seventeenth century, the Piscataway had come to exercise hegemony over other Algonquian-speaking Native American groups on the north bank of the river. The Piscataway nation declined dramatically before the nineteenth century, under the influence of colonization, infectious disease, and intertribal and colonial warfare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piscataway people</span> Native American ethnic group

The Piscatawaypih-SKAT-ə-WAY or Piscatawapih-SKAT-ə-WAY, PIH-skə-TAH-wə, are Native Americans. They spoke Algonquian Piscataway, a dialect of Nanticoke. One of their neighboring tribes, with whom they merged after a massive decline of population following two centuries of interactions with European settlers, called them the Conoy.

The Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribal Nation is a tribal confederation of Nanticoke of the Delmarva Peninsula and the Lenape of southern New Jersey and northern Delaware. They are recognized by the state of New Jersey, having reorganized and maintained elected governments since the 1970s. They are not a federally recognized tribe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yaocomico</span> Group of indigenous people native to North America

The Yaocomico, also spelled Yaocomaco, were an Algonquian-speaking Native American group who lived along the north bank of the Potomac River near its confluence with the Chesapeake Bay in the 17th century. They were related to the Piscataway, the dominant nation north of the Potomac.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piscataway language</span> Extinct Algonquian language of Maryland, US

Piscataway is an extinct Algonquian language formerly spoken by the Piscataway, a dominant chiefdom in southern Maryland on the Western Shore of the Chesapeake Bay at time of contact with English settlers. Piscataway, also known as Conoy, is considered a dialect of Nanticoke.

Nanticoke is an Algonquian language spoken in Delaware and Maryland, United States. The same language was spoken by several neighboring tribes, including the Nanticoke, which constituted the paramount chiefdom; the Choptank, the Assateague, and probably also the Piscataway and the Doeg.

The Nacotchtank, also Anacostine, were an Algonquian Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands.

The Patuxent or Pawtuxent were one of the Native American tribes living along the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. They spoke an Algonquian language and were loosely dominated by the Piscataway.

The Choptank were an Algonquian-speaking Native American people that historically lived on the Eastern Shore of Maryland on the Delmarva Peninsula. They occupied an area along the lower Choptank River basin, which included parts of present-day Talbot, Dorchester and Caroline counties. They spoke Nanticoke, an Eastern Algonquian language closely related to Delaware. The Choptank were the only Indians on the Eastern Shore to be granted a reservation in fee simple by the English colonial government. The Choptank were a subdivision of the Nanticoke.

The Assateague were an Algonquian people speaking the Nanticoke language who historically lived on the Atlantic coast side of the Delmarva Peninsula.

The history of Native Americans in Baltimore and what is now Baltimore dates back at least 12,000 years. As of 2014, Baltimore is home to a small Native American population, centered in East Baltimore. The majority of Native Americans now living in Baltimore belong to the Lumbee, Piscataway, and Cherokee peoples. The Piscataway people live in Southern Maryland and are recognized by the state of Maryland. The Lumbee and Cherokee are Indigenous to North Carolina and neighboring states of the Southeastern United States. Many of the Lumbee and Cherokee migrated to Baltimore during the mid-20th century along with other migrants from the Southern United States, such as African-Americans and white Appalachians. The Lumbee are state recognized in North Carolina as the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, but have no state recognition in Maryland. The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina are a federally recognized tribe. There are three state recognized tribes in Maryland; the Piscataway-Conoy Tribe of Maryland, the Piscataway Indian Nation and Tayac Territory, and the Accohannock Indian Tribe. Maryland has no federally recognized tribes.

The Ozinie, also known as the Wicomiss, were a group of Native Americans living near modern-day Rock Hall, in Kent County, Maryland. They were hunter-gatherers and fished.

The 1666 Articles of Peace and Amity was a treaty signed on 20 April 1666 between the English colony of Maryland and 12 Eastern Algonquian-speaking Indigenous nations, including the Piscataway, Anacostanck, Doegs, Mikikiwomans, Manasquesend, Mattawoman, Chingwawateick, Hangemaick, Portobackes, Sacayo, Panyayo, and Choptico. The treaty established the right of Native peoples to remain on their lands and preserved their inviolable right to continue fishing, crabbing, hunting, and fowling. The treaty also stated that "If an Indian kill an Englishman he shall dye for itt"; however execution is only prescribed for English colonists if an "English man shall kill any Indian that shall come vnpaynted". The treaty forbade Native peoples from entering any colonial settlements while being "painted", stating that "the English cannot easily distinguish one Indian from another." If a Native person and a colonist met accidentally in the forest, the "Indian shall be bound immediately to throwe downe his Armes vpon call, and in case any Indian soe meeting an English man shall refuse to throwe downe his armes vpon Call he shall be deemed as an Enemy."

The Piscataway Conoy Tribe of Maryland is a Native American tribe recognized by the state of Maryland. They are a part of the Piscataway people.

References

  1. ↑ DiLisio, James E.; Bready, James H. "Maryland History". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  2. ↑ "National Register Properties in Maryland". Maryland Historical Trust. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  3. ↑ "The Voyages – Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail". National Park Service. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
  4. ↑ "The settlement of Maryland". HISTORY. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  5. 1 2 Browne, William Hand (1890). George Calvert and Cecilius Calvert Barons Baltimore of Baltimore. Dodd, Mead. p. 66.
  6. ↑ Gruenberg, Bonnie U. (September 19, 2015). The Hoofprints Guide to the Wild Horses of Chincoteage National Wildlife Refuge. Quagga Press. p. 61. ISBN   978-1-941700-25-9 . Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  7. 1 2 "Maryland Historical Chronology, 1600–1699". Maryland Manual On-Line. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  8. 1 2 "Native Americans of Maryland". History of American Women. June 30, 2008. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Maryland Historical Chronology, 1700–1799". Maryland Manual On-Line. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  10. ↑ Archives of Maryland, Volume 0061, Page 0429 – Proceedings and Acts of the General Assembly, 1766–1768. p. 429, Vol. 61.
  11. 1 2 3 Reed, Lillian (October 11, 2021). "More Marylanders now identify as Indigenous amid call for more accurate record keeping". Baltimore Sun .
  12. ↑ Louis, Billy Jean (January 11, 2022). "The Maryland Historical Trust seeks to document the state's long history of Indigenous people". Baltimore Sun . Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  13. ↑ American Indians and Alaska Natives in Maryland (PDF). July 2013. p. 1. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
  14. 1 2 Van Dam, Andrew Van Dam. "The Native American population exploded, the census shows. Here's why". Washington Post. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Maryland Native Americans". Maryland Manual On-Line. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  16. ↑ "About Our Maps". Native Languages. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  17. 1 2 3 4 Clark, Wayne E. "Indian in Maryland, an Overview". Maryland Online Encyclopedia. Maryland Historical Society,the Maryland Humanities Council, the Enoch Pratt Free Library, and the Maryland State Department of Education. Archived from the original on July 11, 2010. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Tribal Consultation". Department of Planning. Maryland Historical Trust. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  19. ↑ Ebright, Carol A. (September 14, 2012). "Federally Recognized Tribes Consulting with SHA" (PDF). Cultural Resources Section. Maryland State Highway Administration. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  20. 1 2 "Indigenous Peoples of the Chesapeake | Chesapeake Bay Program". Chesapeake Bay Program. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
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