Queen Betty (Pamunkey chief)

"Queen Betty" was the hereditary chief or Weroansqua of the Pamunkey Indian tribe and fourth successor of Wahunsenacawh. She led the Pamunkey and allied tribes from the death of Cockacoeske in 1686 to about 1708.

History

The English expected Cockacoeske's son Captain John West to succeed her, but he may have died. He was said to be the son of the English Colonel John West, who had a plantation on the Pamunkey River. The senior West and Cockacoeske were documented companions.^[1] As it happened she was succeeded by Betty her niece who ruled from 1686 to ca 1708.^[2]

References

1. ^ E. Grizzard, D. Boyd Smith, Jamestown Colony, Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2007, p. 162, accessed 31 Jan 2009
2. ^ A Study of Virginia Indians and Jamestown: The First Century Chapter four, by Martha W. McCartney for the National Park Service of the United States.