Werowocomoco
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Werowocomoco was the political center of the Powhatan Confederacy of Native American tribes, speaking an Algonquian language, who lived in what is now Virginia at the time of the first English-Native encounters during the establishment of Jamestown and the Virginia Colony in the early 17th century.
Contents |
[edit] Powhatan Confederacy
The Powhatan (also spelled Powatan and Powhaten) were a powerful chiefdom headed by Wahunsunacock (the Chief Powhatan). When this chief created a paramount chiefdom by conquering much of coastal Virginia, he called his lands "Tsenacommacah" and he himself was referred to as "Powhatan", often assumed to be his given name, but actually a place-name (see article Powhatan).
The name "Werowocomoco" comes from Powhatan werowans (weroance) "chief" and komakah (-comoco) "settlement". In addition to Werowocomoco, Tsenacommacah maintained another headquarters at the village of Powhatan (in the eastern portion of the present site of Richmond, Virginia).
Early maps and descriptions of the region indicate that Werowocomoco was located on present-day Purtan Bay along the north bank of the York River in Gloucester County, about 25 miles downstream from the "Country called Pamunkey", 12 miles north of Jamestown, and 11 miles upstream from the village of Chiskiack (or Kiskiack), which was located on the south shore of the York River within the boundaries of the current Naval Weapons Station Yorktown in York County, west of Yorktown.
[edit] Pocahontas and Captain John Smith
Werowocomoco is best known as the location of the well-known and oft-told story of English soldier and colonist John Smith's rescue by Pocahontas after he was captured by Opchanacanough, the younger brother of Chief Powhatan while foraging along the Chickahominy River. The captured Englishman was brought to Werowocomoco and brought before Tsenacommacah (Chief Powhatan).
According to Smith's account, Pocahontas, Chief Powhatan's daughter, prevented her father from executing Smith. However, if it indeed happened at all, it is also believed that this could have been a ritual intended to adopt Smith into the tribe. (Smith made no mention of the incident for over twenty years in his own writings). The story is unclear after 400 years and various dramatic and romanticized versions in book and film.
[edit] Recent archaeological work
Two Gloucester-based archaeologists, Thane Harpole and David Brown, were instrumental in finding the site in 2003 and are involved in the excavations there. [1] Starting that year, the Werowocomoco Research Group began excavations at the Werowocomoco site. The Research Group is a collaborative effort of the College of William and Mary, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, and Virginia tribes descended from the Powhatans. The excavations have identified a dispersed village community occupied from A.D. 1200 through the early seventeenth century. Artifacts recovered during the excavations include Native pottery, stone tools, as well as floral and faunal remains from a large residential community. The Research Group has also recovered large numbers of English trade goods produced from glass, copper, and other metals originating from Jamestown. The colonists' accounts of interaction at Werowocomoco emphasize Powhatan's efforts to obtain large numbers of English objects, particularly copper, during the early days of the Jamestown colony.
