Old Dartmouth

Old Dartmouth was the first area of Southeastern Massachusetts settled by Europeans. It was purchased on behalf of the Plymouth Colony in 1652 from the indigenous Wampanoag people. The lands included all of modern-day Dartmouth, New Bedford, Westport, Fairhaven, and Acushnet in current day Massachusetts, as well as parts of modern Tiverton and Little Compton In Rhode Island, an area of around 145,000 individuals in the modern area.

History

Pre-colonization

Before colonization, the lands that accounted for Old Dartmouth had been inhabited by the Wampanoag Native Americans, who are part of the Algonquian language family. The Wampanoag had settlements throughout all of southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, including the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. It is believed that their population would have been around 12,000 at the time. The Wampanoag had inhabited the area for up to a thousand years before European colonization, and their ancestors had been there far longer. However, In John Winthrop's (1587–1649) journal, he wrote the name of Dartmouth's indigenous tribes as being the Nukkehkammes.

First settled by Europeans

The first European settlement in the Old Dartmouth area was at present-day Cuttyhunk Island by the explorer Bartholomew Gosnold in 1602. He arrived in a ship called The Concord which had set off from Falmouth and skirted past the Azores sometime earlier. Arriving at Cuttyhunk, Gosnold found evidence of indigenous inhabitants and noted an abundance of natural resources. He decided that due to the island's ample defense capabilities and fertile land it would be a perfect place to begin a new colony. After initiating the settlement on Cuttyhunk. Gosnold led an expedition to the mainland. He had several encounters with the natives. Relations at first were good. But as time progressed hostilities became more and more evident. Tension occurred throughout the remaining settlers and they soon abandoned the settlement.

Purchase and official settlement

In 1652, English colonists purchased Old Dartmouth. A region of changed hands in a treaty between the Wampanoag—represented by Chief Ousamequin (Massasoit) and his son Wamsutta—and high-ranking "Purchasers" and "Old Comers" from Plymouth Colony: John Winslow, William Bradford, Myles Standish, Thomas Southworth, Henry Howland, and John Cooke. The territory was purchased for "30 yards of cloth, eight moose skins, fifteen axes, fifteen hoes, fifteen pair of breeches, eight blankets, two kettles, one cloak, £2 in wampum, eight pair stockings, eight pair shoes, one iron pot and 10 shillings in another commoditie" ic The area of the new settlement was described as being three miles east of the Acushnet River; running west to a flat rock on the west side of the Acoaxet River, and extending inland eight miles. The settlement was then split between 36 proprietors with each gaining at least 800 acres of land. The earliest settlements were all positioned in strategic locations from fear of the natives.

While the Europeans considered themselves full owners of the land through the transaction, the Wampanoag have disputed this claim because the concept of exclusive land ownership—in contrast with hunting, fishing, and farming rights—was a foreign concept to them. According to the European interpretation of the deed, within one year, all Natives previously living in the area had to leave. This led to a lengthy dispute over the boundary lines of the settlement, about which the deed was unclear. The younger son of Massasoit, Metacomet

HOME


Content is Copyleft
Website design, code, and AI is Copyrighted (c) 2014-2017 by Stephen Payne


Consider donating to Wikimedia



As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases