278:; however, the British immediately turned on their allies and attacked three forts within the Occaneechi village. The British killed the Occaneechi's leader Posseclay, approximately 100 men, as well as many women and children. A Susquehannock war party attacked Occoneechee Island in the summer of 1678. Old records in the British Public Record Office describe Bacon's expedition traveling southward from the James to Roanoke Rivers, expecting the fleeing Susquehannocks would try to buy powder from the Occaneechi at their island in the Roanoke River, and entering an agreement with the Occaneechee and their Manneking, Haykolott, and Annelector allies, who raided the Susquehannocks and captured about 30 men, some of whom they put to death. The records also include a letter written by Mrs. Bacon to her sister on June 29, 1676 (which the sister received on September 26) describing many Indian raids, and Bacon's losses including an overseer at one of his outward plantations, as well as many cattle. Bacon himself also complained of losing an overseer and cattle before his expedition, and described a two-day fight at the Occaneechee island, and killing about 100 men and two of their kings, beside women and children.
408:. After 1742 the settlement is no longer mentioned, but only a road called Junkatapurse. In the 1740s, the Saponi migrated south to live with the Catawba. Governor Gooch of Virginia reported that the "Saponies and other petty nations associated with them ... are retired out of Virginia to the Cattawbas" during the years 1743–1747.
37:
271:, thus bypassing the Occaneechi. The party did make contact with the Cherokee. It was not until the last decades of the 17th century when South Carolina colonists established a strong relationship with the Cherokee and other interior tribes, that the Occaneechi role as trading middleman was undermined.
361:
from 1714 to 1717. Its closure was apparently due to a lack of profits as an Indian trading center. Although several distinct groups of Siouan
Indians lived at Fort Christanna, the English Virginians tended to refer to them simply as "Saponi" or "Fort Christanna Indians." After the closing of Fort
442:
Starting in the middle of the 18th century, however, historic records note Saponi living in North
Carolina. Some Saponi moved from Virginia to various places in North Carolina. There is some evidence that isolated Indians never left these areas of North Carolina and became consolidated with Saponi
208:
The meaning and origin of the name
Occaneechi is unknown. They have also historically been called the Achonechy, Aconechos, Akenatzy, Hockinechy, Occaneches, Occaanechy, Occhonechee, Occonacheans, Occoneechee, Ockanechees, Ockanigee, Okenechee, Acconeechy, Occaneeches, Ochineeches, and Ockinagee.
465:
of
Virginia wrote a letter that included a description of the Indians of Virginia: "There are some of the Nottoways, Meherrins, Tuscaroras, and Saponys, who tho' they live in peace in the midst of us, lead in great measure the lives of wild Indians." He contrasted these Indians with the Eastern
326:, "understood by the chief men of many nations, as Latin is in many parts of Europe" — even though, he says, the Occaneechi "have been but a small nation, ever since those parts were known to the English." Beverley said that the "priests and conjurers" of the other
196:. The Siouan people had been drastically reduced to approximately 600 people. Fort Christanna was closed in 1717, after which there are few written references to the Occaneechi. Colonists recorded that they left the area in 1740 and migrated north for protection with the
365:
By 1720, after ongoing losses from warfare, the remnant bands of the
Occaneechi, Saponi, and Stukanox, "who not finding themselves Separately Numerous, enough for their Defence, have agreed to unite in one Body, and all of them now go under the Name of the Sapponeys, as
234:
Archeological studies have found finely chipped projectile points, which provide evidence of thousands of years of habitation, on the former
Occoneechee Island, as well as nearby Field's Island, Lewis Island, and Tottero (or Nelson's) Island in the Roanoke River.
522:
on the
Roanoke River near its confluence with the Dan River, flooded Occoneechee Island where the tribe had been decimated in May 1676. A Virginia historical marker at the park's entrance mentions the massacre, as well as tribal members' return to
349:
mentioned the
Occaneechi as being one of nine Native nations within Virginia in 1712. Along with the "Stuckanok, Tottero, and Saponi," the Occaneechi signed a "Treaty of Peace" with the colony of Virginia in 1713. They moved to
188:, the Saponi and Tutelo came to live near the Occaneechi on adjacent islands. By 1714 the Occaneechi moved to join the Tutelo, Saponi, and other Siouan people living on a 36-square-mile (93 km) reservation in current-day
458:) or another group related to the Occaneechi. This, along with various oral traditions, indicates Indians' living in a more or less traditional manner in North Carolina's Piedmont after such settlements supposedly vanished.
251:
that connected
Virginia with the interior of North America. Their position on the Trading Path gave the Occaneechi the power to act as trading "middlemen" between Virginia and various tribes to the west. German physician
403:
Indians. After 1733 the Saponi appear to have fragmented into small groups and dispersed. Some apparently remained in the vicinity of Fort
Christanna, which was noted in Virginia records by its Saponi name,
384:(another Iroquoian tribe). "hey lay the whole blame upon the Occaneechy King and the Saponi Indians." This suggests that English settlers recognized a distinction between the Occaneechi and Saponi.
362:
Christanna in 1717, colonial records contain few references to the Occaneechi. Those references that do exist indicate a continued trade between Virginia colonists and the Saponi and Occaneechi.
435:. Traditional English-American histories typically describe the Saponi group of Indians as having left Virginia and North Carolina in the 18th century, either to join the Catawba or the
478:
For years lay people and researchers have discovered thousands of artifacts from Occoneechee Town, Saponi Town, and Tutelo Town on islands in the Roanoke River near
611:. Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 30. Vol. 2 (Second ed.). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. p. 103
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research at the site give insight into a society undergoing rapid change. They also were working to continue traditional crafts and a way of life.
123:
380:, in a region where some violence had broken out, wrote to the governor of Virginia about the events. He said the Meherrin denied attacking the
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tribes "perform their adorations and conjurations" in this general language, much "as the Catholics of all nations do their Mass in the Latin."
470:
Indians, whom he described as more assimilated to English ways. Thus, there are still indications of Saponi in Virginia during this period.
935:
1043:
987:
Lerch, Patricia B. "Indians of the Carolinas Since 1900." Sturtevant, William C., general editor and Raymond D. Fogelson, volume editor.
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428:
554:, who self-identified as descendants of the descended from Occannechi, Saponi, and Tutelo from Fort Christanna, began hosting an annual
1048:
141:
In the 17th century they primarily lived on the large, 4-mile (6.4 km) long Occoneechee Island and east of the confluence of the
918:
Demallie, Raymond J. "Tutelo and Neighboring Groups." Sturtevant, William C., general editor and Raymond D. Fogelson, volume editor.
221:, related to the Saponi and Tutelo languages. It became a commonly used trade language for the region by the early 18th century.
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reservoir, this was site had an abundance of artifacts. Since 1983 the Research Laboratories of Anthropology at the
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539:. In 2002 the tribe was recognized by the state of North Carolina. The members of the tribe live primarily in
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have been uncovering another "Occaneechi Town", a late 17th and early 18th century Occaneechi village on the
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20:
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nearby decades later. The visitor's center now features exhibits about the indigenous people of the area.
189:
650:
John W. Tisdale, The Story of the Occconeechees (Richmond: The Dietz Press, Incorporated 1953) pp. 8-9
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Most of the remaining Saponi members were recorded as migrating north in 1740 for protection with the
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records noted an "Interpreter to the Saponi and Occaneechi Indians." This implied the existence of
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In May 1676, the Occaneechi allied with Nathaniel Bacon and his British troops in a war with the
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and decimated. Also under demographic pressure from European settlements and newly introduced
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950:
454:. The Moravians called the Indians "Cherokees", but it is more likely they were Sissipahau (
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949:. The North Carolina Archaeological Society, University of North Carolina. Archived from
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By 1676, the Saponi and Tuleto settled near the Occaneechi, later to be joining by the
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936:"Occaneechi-Saponi Descendants in the North Carolina Piedmont: The Texas Community"
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415:. They mostly disappeared from the historical record in the Southeast. After the
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In the late 20th century, descendants of the remnant Siouan peoples formed the
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in southeast Virginia. Occaneechi Town was almost entirely abandoned by 1713.
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The Historic Occaneechi: An Archaeological Investigation of Culture Change
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in South Carolina, but most returned to Virginia in 1733, along with some
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recognizes the tribe, whose members primarily reside in Alamance County.
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on the Roanoke River in 1952 and the islands' flooding by the resultant
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The Occaneechi were first written about in 1650, by English explorer
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331:
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James Mooney (1912). "Occaneechi". In Frederick Webb Hodge (ed.).
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16:
Historical Native American tribe from Virginia and North Carolina
975:. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 103
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Occaneechi people. In 1730, many Saponi moved to live among the
320:(1705), wrote that the Occaneechi language was widely used as a
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424:
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scholars believe that the Occaneechi spoke a dialect of the
991:. Volume 14. Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution, 2004.
922:. Volume 14. Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution, 2004.
802:
The William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine
757:
The William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine
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The William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine
1025:, Research Laboratories of Anthropology, UNC—Chapel Hill
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reported an Indian palisaded "fort" settlement near the
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Hazel, Forest (October 1991). Mathis, Mark A (ed.).
867:. Virginia Department of Conversation and Recreation
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on 2,698 acres on the Virginia shore of 48,000-acre
423:, the majority of the Iroquois (and Saponi) went to
446:In 1756, Moravian settlers living near present-day
1010:Excavating Occaneechi Town: An archaeology primer
972:Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico: N-Z
427:for resettlement. Descendants live mostly at the
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124:Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands
297:visited the Occaneechi village, located on the
693:
691:
267:in an attempt to make direct contact with the
180:, the tribe was attacked by militias from the
989:Handbook of North American Indians: Southeast
920:Handbook of North American Indians: Southeast
41:Map with general area of Occaneechi homelands
608:Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico
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126:whose historical territory was in the
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318:History and Present State of Virginia
537:Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation
357:Fort Christanna was operated by the
47:Regions with significant populations
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373:In 1727, a settler living near the
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482:. Until the completion of the
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217:The Occaneechi language was a
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518:. Kerr Lake, created by the
500:Hillsborough, North Carolina
303:Hillsborough, North Carolina
192:. It included a fort called
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256:wrote about them in 1670.
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190:Brunswick County, Virginia
176:In 1676, in the course of
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619:– via Google Books.
560:Occaneechi Band of Saponi
149:rivers, near current-day
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861:"Occoneechee State Park"
153:. They spoke one of the
943:Southern Indian Studies
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718:(1): 1–10. July 1900.
512:Occoneechee State Park
506:Occoneechee State Park
461:In 1763, Lt. Governor
130:region of present-day
808:(1): 6–7. July 1900.
480:Clarksville, Virginia
265:Appalachian Mountains
151:Clarksville, Virginia
93:Related ethnic groups
865:Virginia State Parks
314:Robert Beverley, Jr.
19:For other uses, see
798:"Bacon's Rebellion"
763:(1): 4. July 1900.
753:"Bacon's Rebellion"
708:"Bacon's Rebellion"
417:American Revolution
387:In 1730 Virginia's
347:Alexander Spotswood
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87:Indigenous religion
75:Occaneechi language
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389:House of Burgesses
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26:Ethnic group
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979:14 January
913:References
827:14 January
782:14 January
737:14 January
684:Hazel 1991
466:Shore and
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312:Historian
230:Precontact
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30:Occaneechi
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885:Lerch 333
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488:Kerr Lake
456:Saxapahaw
452:Haw River
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338:language
316:, in his
299:Eno River
283:Conestoga
259:In 1673,
73:English,
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901:See also
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468:Pamunkey
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413:Iroquois
393:monoglot
382:Nottoway
378:Meherrin
293:In 1701
269:Cherokee
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336:Siouan
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159:Saponi
109:, and
107:Biloxi
103:Tutelo
99:Saponi
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728:JSTOR
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