Indigenous Life on the Nansemond River
Our Story of Cultural Revitalization through River Stewardship
We are the indigenous people of the Nansemond River. Our name, meaning "Fishing Point," comes from the Coastal Algonquian language spoken by our ancestors who lived in settlements along the Nansemond River for thousands of years.
Centuries of displacement have left many of us physically disconnected from the river, yet our spiritual connection remains. This StoryMap explores our experience on the Nansemond River and our vision for cultural revitalization through river stewardship.
Ecosystem
The Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in North America, has nurtured indigenous people for thousands of years.
The Nansemond River, located near where the James River empties into the Chesapeake Bay, is the historical and cultural heart of the Nansemond people.
Follow us on a tour of the Nansemond River's anatomy and ecosystem.
Lake Cahoon, Lake Kilby, and Lake Meade were originally streams that formed the headwaters of the Nansemond River, which has two tributaries—Western Branch (sourced by Lake Burnt Mills and Lake Prince before they were impounded by dams) and Bennett’s Creek.
The Nansemond River flows approximately 20 miles from the Suffolk city center to its mouth at the James River, which opens into the Chesapeake Bay. The Nansemond River watershed, which extends beyond the City of Suffolk into Isle of Wight County, spans about 160,000 acres.
The Nansemond River is home to many plants and animals that each play a role and establish balance within the Nansemond River ecosystem. "Ecosystem" is a scientific term used to represent all beings—the plants, the finned, the feathered, the four-legged, the two-legged, all life forms, and all natural elements. In our culture, we recognize our interdependence and live in reciprocity with nature.
Keystone Species
One of the most environmentally and culturally significant species within the Nansemond River ecosystem is the Cauwaih (Coastal Algonquian for “Oyster,” specifically “ Crassostrea virginic a,” the Eastern oyster indigenous to the Chesapeake Bay).
Keystone species play a central role in the health of an ecosystem. Oysters are a keystone species in the Chesapeake Bay and the Nansemond River. Their reefs provide shelter for marine life and stabilize shorelines by reducing wave energy.
Oysters also filter suckquohana (Coastal Algonquian for “water”) which keeps it clear so that underwater grasses (and other photosynthetic organisms ) have enough light to grow.
In Native American culture, beadwork is a popular craft and people often bead plants and animals of cultural significance. These beaded oysters and crabs represent vitality in our ecosystem.
Learn more about oysters and their positive ecological influence in "The Incredible Oyster Reef."
Habitat
Oysters live in two primary habitats— nearshore and offshore. Nearshore oysters are found in shallow (intertidal) areas and are exposed at low tide, like these in Bennett's Creek.
Offshore oysters are found in continuously submerged (subtidal) reefs, like Nansemond Ridge located near the mouth of the Nansemond River.
When explorers arrived in the region in the early 1600s, Nansemond Ridge was approximately 7 miles long and one of the world's largest oyster reefs.
The abundance of oysters and marine life within the Nansemond River ecosystem sustained our people for thousands of years. Learn more about our ancestors in the next section on River Stewards.
River Stewards
The indigenous people of this region lived for thousands of years without written language. Oral tradition was used to share knowledge about the environment, survival, moral values, other tribal communities, and more.
Image Credit: National Park Service / Rob Wood
Archaeological sites around the Nansemond River preserve and reinforce our stories that precede the written record. From the Paleo-Indian Period 12,000-9,000 years ago...
...to the Archaic Period 9,000-3,000 years ago...
...to the Woodland Period 3,000 years ago...
...and Historic Period—we see where our civilization flourished along the river.
Village Life
Our Nansemond ancestors foraged, farmed, harvested shellfish, fished, and hunted throughout the region. We lived in small riverfront settlements of approximately 100 people and were governed by weroances (Coastal Algonquian for "Chief").
When colonists arrived in the early 1600s, they documented the names of four weroances—Weyhohomo (a great weroance), Amapetough, Weyongopo, and Tirchtough (lesser weroances).
Image Credit: National Park Service / Rob Wood
Follow us on an aerial tour of the Nansemond River and some of the sites of our ancestral settlements today.
Teracosick (East Bank)
This village was near the headwaters of the Nansemond River, around the present intersection of Williams Road & Wilroy Road in the Suffolk Borough .
Nandsamund (West Bank)
This is an old spelling of “Nansemond.” The capital town, and site of the great weroance's house, was just south of many of the best corn-growing soils. Nandsamund was located near present Reid's Ferry in the Chuckatuck Borough .
Mattanock (West Bank)
This village was about halfway up the Nansemond River, just north of many of the best corn-growing soils. Mattanock was located near what is now called Campbell Creek (off of Crittenden Road) in the Chuckatuck Borough .
Mantoughquemend (East of the River)
This village was near the present Suffolk-Chesapeake line, on what is now called Goose Creek in the Western Branch Borough of Chesapeake . These images provide the nearest perspective of the Nansemond River.
Crittenden
This community sits at the confluence of the James and Nansemond Rivers and Chuckatuck Creek. It was described as being lined with oysters.
Cultural Connections
Life along the Nansemond River left us with countless cultural connections to the water and the life within it. Oysters were part of our daily diet, especially in fall and winter.
Women and girls traveled through marshes in aquointan (Coastal Algonquian for “canoe”) to harvest nearshore oysters and other foods. Boys dived to collect oysters and other shellfish offshore, sometimes using parent reefs like Nansemond Ridge to ‘seed’ shoreline populations.
Image Credit: The Mariners' Museum, Newport News, Virginia , Original Author: Theodor de Bry after John White
After harvesting, our ancestors made seafood stews and dried shellfish to preserve them for year-round consumption.
Crabs, mussels, oysters, and various fish were all staple s and prized feast foods served in early diplomatic engagements between our ancestors and colonists.
Image Credit: The Mariners' Museum, Newport News, Virginia , Original Author: Theodor de Bry after John White
Oysters were much more than a food source in our culture. Sharp shells were used as tools to shave hair, scrape hides, and hollow out dugout canoes.
Oyster shells were often larger than a human hand and served the purpose of a blade in a variety of grooming, clothing, and construction activities.
Image Credit: William & Mary / Rowan Lockwood
There are approximately 30 shell middens along the Nansemond River, demonstrating the long-lasting prominence of shellfish in our culture.
Our people also use shells for a wide variety of adornments. Indigenous women throughout the Chesapeake Bay used mussel shells to make shell beads which were strung together to make necklaces. Mussel shell bead production was time-consuming, and the resulting necklaces were so valuable they were used for currency and marriage proposals.
Drilled Freshwater Pearls , Image Credit: Historic Jamestowne
Mussels also produced pearls which were used to embroider clothing (an earlier version of the beadwork shown above) and make necklaces. Pearls were a symbol of wealth and political power throughout the region. In early interactions with colonists, indigenous leaders gifted pearl necklaces to allies and used these necklaces to authenticate messengers sent by their allies.
As you can see, Nansemond culture formed through our close relationship to the Nansemond River. We ate from the river, groomed and clothed ourselves with tools from the river, and shared the river's gifts with family and friends. Learn more about our struggle to defend our homeland in the next section on Displacement.
Displacement
When colonists arrived in Nansemond territory in the early 1600s, their objective was to acquire resources. The Jamestown Settlement's food supply was insufficient to sustain its growth, and the Virginia Colony’s leadership strategically sent out expeditions to trade and settle new areas.
Virginia, Map Credit: Library of Congress
The colonists' first attempt to trade with the Nansemond community was peaceful. The Nansemond welcomed them to a feast and accommodated their stay. However, their second attempt to trade for food stores at Dumpling Island (a sacred site) ended in bloody conflict.
The Nansemond killed two messengers from the expedition, and the colonists retaliated by burning Nansemond yohacan (Coastal Algonquian for “houses”) and temples, desecrating the dead, and stealing funerary objects from Dumpling Island. This violence precluded trade, and the colonists temporarily abandoned the Nansemond River.
Daily Press (Newport News, Virginia), Friday, January 29, 1988, "Nansemond Homecoming." Chief Oliver Perry reflected on English dependence on indigenous people for survival. Read more about this complex relationship here .
Conflict between the colonists, the Nansemond, and other Chesapeake Bay tribes, escalated with a series of wars spanning 1610-1614, 1622-1626, and 1644-1646. These wars resulted in unfulfilled peace agreements, significant land loss, and the dissolution of centralized leadership among the coastal Algonquian communities.
By 1676, more conflict ensued, with some colonial leaders proposing to remove or murder all indigenous people in Virginia. This uprising, known as Bacon's Rebellion , resulted in the Treaty of Middle Plantation (signed in 1677). Many tribal leaders, including a Nansemond weroance, signed the treaty and became "tributary tribes" to the English crown.
In exchange for loyalty, tributary tribes were promised...
Despite the agreements made under the Treaty of Middle Plantation, Nansemond settlements were under encroachment throughout the early 1600s, and much (if not all) Nansemond riverfront land was already under colonial control by 1677.
The lower parish of Nansemond County, Va. with adjoining portions of Norfolk County . This map shows early land claims on the Nansemond River and the colonists' use of the river as a boundary. Chesapeake Bay tribes saw rivers as community centers, not as dividing lines.
Desirable Land
Riverfront land, and its fertile soil, was most desirable to agrarian colonists and the first to be claimed. Numerous land patents granted on the Nansemond River were described as "being part of" or "adjoining" Indian Towns.
Meanwhile, Nansemond people were forcefully displaced onto less desirable land. This map shows the remaining presence of the Nansemond community on the Nansemond River at "Indian Branch" in 1670.
In the late 1600s and early 1700s, some Nansemond families shifted east toward Mantoughquemend (near the area now known as Bowers Hill on the Western Branch of the Elizabeth River). The Indiana United Methodist Church sits at the center of this community.
During the same time, others shifted southwest toward the Nansemond Indian Town at the confluence of the Nottoway River, Blackwater River, and Chowan River on the present Virginia/North Carolina line.
This became a place of intertribal resilience for the Nottoway, Nansemond, Meherrin, and Chowanoke, and many tribal families blended here. Disputes over the state line and illegal land claims also united these tribes in political action against colonial encroachment.
The Great Dismal Swamp, an ancestral foraging and hunting ground, sits in the center of each of these locations.
Despite violence and land theft, traditional territory surrounding the Great Dismal Swamp became a stronghold for the dispersed Nansemond community and other tribal relatives.
The total displacement of Nansemond people from the Nansemond River happened over time through legal and socioeconomic strategies. These are some of the mechanics of displacement and erasure.
Doctrine of Discovery
Signed in 1493, this gave European Christian explorers a perceived legal basis to claim land anywhere in the world and to subject non-Christian communities to their authority upon "discovery."
Because this doctrine was designed to bring civilization and religion to 'barbarians,' it incentivized ignorance to indigenous sophistication—especially around our stewardship of ancestral land and waters.
Broken Treaties
Peace agreements were violated throughout the 1600s. Under the English Crown, land disputes were poorly managed by the King and appointed leadership in London.
When the Articles of Confederation were created (1777) and ratified (1781), the newly formed United States government did not include any protections promised under the Treaty of Middle Plantation.
To date, the United States government has never ratified treaties with Chesapeake Bay tribes. This map shows Federal American Indian Reservations, many of which are the result of Indian Removal in the 1800s.
Identity Control
After physically displacing Nansemond people and other Chesapeake Bay tribes from ancestral land and waters, the last frontier was to erase our identities—which are a lifeline to our homelands. Countless laws were created to control Indians, recategorize multiracial Indians, and deny all forms of Indian autonomy.
As our people were displaced from the Nansemond River, other parts of the ecosystem were also affected by colonization. Learn more about these changes in the next section on environmental Decline.
Decline
The first colonists harvested nearshore oysters by hand, similar to our people. They also found multiple uses for oyster shells, from roadbeds to soil additives, feed supplements, mortar, and more. As a result, early oyster consumption and shell use was relatively sustainable and did not negatively affect oyster reefs.
Oyster Harvesting Technology
As shared in the section on Displacement, the Nansemond riverfront went from dispersed tribal villages to land patents covering both banks of the river. Oyster demand increased with the growing population and new harvesting technologies transformed the oyster industry throughout the Chesapeake Bay.
Oyster Fishing Communities
Railroad construction revolutionized commerce in the mid-1800s. As inland transportation expanded, oyster demand shifted from coastal communities to the whole continent.
New preservation methods emerged (e.g., canning), and oyster harvests increased more than tenfold. This unprecedented oyster demand set the stage for the oyster fishing communities in Crittenden, Eclipse, and Hobson.
Many descendants of colonial farmers shifted to small oyster fishing villages nestled between the James and Nansemond Rivers and Chuckatuck Creek.
This boom also created economic opportunity for African Americans emancipated from slavery after the Civil War . In the heart of Hobson, these industrious families formed a new community and way of life on the water that would sustain them for generations.
Image Credit: George Pope, Jr. & Family
Place, Culture & Identity
Generations of subsistence gave these oyster fishing communities immense love for the Nansemond River. The people of Crittenden, Eclipse, and Hobson have their own culture and identity derived from their relationship to the river, and environmental decline has threatened their livelihoods.
Virginia Marine Resources Commission
The rapid growth of the oyster trade created a need for shellfish laws and marine police (the predecessor of the Virginia Marine Resources Commission ). The oyster harvest season was created with open harvests during fall and winter (colloquially, months with 'R') and restrictions during summer.
The private leasehold system was also developed to recognize oyster plantings as property and protect oyster planters from illegal harvest. Deep water dredging was legalized in the 1870s leading to record-breaking oyster harvests in the 1880s, but decline was imminent.
Image Credit: The Notorious Oyster Pirates of Chesapeake Bay
Hampton Roads Sanitation District
In the 1890s and early 1900s, public health concerns arose around shellfish consumption. Raw sewage was being released near oyster beds throughout Hampton Roads, and there were several disease outbreaks.
This resulted in decreased demand and new protective public health laws, such as mandatory depuration (the process of relocating oysters to clean water to metabolize biological and chemical contaminants). These events set the stage for the creation of the Hampton Roads Sanitation District .
Oyster Disease & Chemical Pollution
Before the oyster industry could recover, the region suffered again due to illegal kepone (pesticide) dumping in the James River in the 1960s-1970s. When this chemical pollution was discovered, oyster fishing was banned throughout the James River and its tributaries.
Image Credit: Virginia Humanities / The Legacy of Kepone
Collapse
From the 1980s to the present, the wild oyster fishery has been characterized as “collapsed” (meaning less than 10% of the original population). The system that sustained the native oyster population for centuries (i.e., expansive subtidal "parent" reefs in relationship with intertidal reefs) was destroyed. Today, there is a significant shell shortage, and the need for new habitat is a focal point of oyster restoration.
In addition to the collapse of the oyster fishery, the Nansemond River watershed has experienced significant environmental degradation. Urbanization, polluted stormwater runoff , and aging water infrastructure have posed the greatest threats to the Nansemond River's water quality. Descendants of oyster fishing communities in Crittenden, Eclipse, and Hobson have honored their communities, culture, and identity by protecting the Nansemond River and demanding action.
While life along the Nansemond River evolved, we fought to preserve our history, culture, and identity in small communities throughout southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. Learn more about our return to the Nansemond River in the next section.
Journey Home
As shared in the section on Displacement, the Treaty of Middle Plantation was never ratified by the United States, and tributary tribes were left without rights or government-to-government relationships. Restoring rights, rebuilding intergovernmental relationships, and increasing access to ancestral land started with the Commonwealth of Virginia (the former Virginia Colony) recognizing tribal sovereignty.
State Recognition (1985)
Through a concentrated effort involving several Virginia Indian tribes, anthropologists, and state officials, the Nansemond were granted state recognition on February 20, 1985 under House Joint Resolution No. 205.
Nansemond Indian Homecoming (1988)
The Nansemond Indian Tribal Association hosted its first homecoming on the Nansemond River at Lone Star Lakes Park . Representatives from Historic Jamestowne sailed to the event and reenacted one of the colonists' first expeditions to Nansemond territory in 1608. Reenactors presented Nansemond tribal leaders with a symbolic gift of corn, recognizing the importance of traditional ecological knowledge in the survival of the Jamestown Settlement.
Riverfront Land Deeded to the Tribe (2013)
After hosting the Nansemond Indian Pow Wow at Lone Star Lakes Park for 25 years, t he City of Suffolk deeded a parcel of land to the tribe to recreate a Nansemond Village and cultural center. The tribe named the site Mattanock Town, after the closest ancestral settlement on the Nansemond River.
Federal Recognition (2018)
More than 340 years after the Treaty of Middle Plantation and more than 240 years after the formation of the United States government, six Virginia Indian tribes, including the Nansemond, received federal recognition under the Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act of 2017 .
Virginia Tribes Celebrate Federal Recognition
Federal recognition was a turning point for our people. Tribal sovereignty is the inherent right of tribal nations to self-govern. In this act, the federal government acknowledged our autonomy and formalized an intergovernmental relationship with our people. In the next section, learn more about the magnitude of this moment and the healing work left to be done.
Healing
Our tribe has dreamt of healing our ancestral homeland for a long time. At the Nansemond Indian Homecoming in 1988, our tribal leaders noted that it was a “public declaration” of our “ambition to preserve the environment and save the family.” We shared these hopes with the community without owning land on the Nansemond River or having the resources to return.
Daily Press (Newport News, Virginia), Sunday, September 11, 1988, "Indians Recall Heritage at Reunion"
At the time, tribal gatherings were held at the Indiana United Methodist Church, which served as the tribe's community center and Indian School for generations. Both buildings were repeatedly burned, but the tribal community remained, rebuilt, and continued to commune there until the opportunity to return to the Nansemond River arose in 2013.
Nansemond Indian Public School at Indiana United Methodist Church
Receiving the deed to Nansemond riverfront land at Mattanock Town and federal recognition has enabled us to reconnect with the Nansemond River and have a foundation for tribal community development.
Join us for a tour of some of our latest projects to heal our ancestral homeland.
Cedar Creek Oyster Garden
In 2020, our tribe started an Oyster Garden on Cedar Creek through the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's Oyster Garden Program. This photo shows a handful of baby oysters (called " spat ") on oyster shells from our Oyster Garden.
As spat mature into adult oysters, they filter water and clean our creeks. After starting our Oyster Garden, we also joined the Chesapeake Oyster Alliance to contribute to the shared goal of returning 10 billion oysters to the Bay.
Oyster Substrate & Living Shoreline Projects
Our tribe also started volunteering with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) and Nansemond River Preservation Alliance (NRPA) to learn more about oyster habitat restoration and gain hands-on experience with living shoreline projects .
This StoryMap introduces CBF and NRPA's current Nansemond River oyster substrate project evaluating the performance of 5 different oyster reef materials. The results of this project will provide invaluable insight for our future projects and we hope to expand our volunteering across Hampton Roads.
Defenders of the Nansemond River Fundraiser
With the momentum of these projects, our tribe held a fundraiser named in honor of the four Nansemond weroances who defended the river. Tribal citizens, family, and friends raised more than $5,000 for tribal initiatives to protect the Nansemond River and build partnerships with community organizations with the same mission.
Floating Dock
One of our first investments has been a floating dock to increase access to Cedar Creek for recreational activities, like canoeing and kayaking, and to expand our Oyster Garden. The floating dock is currently being built in partnership with Troop 16 BSA from Driver.
More than 160 Nansemond tribal citizens, family, and friends have worked in the Cedar Creek Oyster Garden, volunteered at oyster habitat restoration events, or donated to Nansemond River restoration projects.
Nansemond tribal citizens working with CBF and NRPA.
Tribal Education & Community Outreach
In addition to these projects, we have developed interactive educational programs, like the Firebird Festival , for our tribe and community members to learn more about our history and culture.
In the future, we plan to:
- Partner with archaeologists to learn more about our ancestral settlements
- Remove invasive species and replant native species at Mattanock Town
- Develop our own shoreline stabilization project for coastal resilience
- Restore oyster reefs throughout the Nansemond River
Cultural Revitalization through River Stewardship
As you travel through our story, you may see parallels between our experience as indigenous people and the destruction of native oyster reefs. Oysters are a keystone species in the Nansemond River because of the foundation they provide for life around them, and Nansemond people have played a similar role that enabled new settlers to survive. Oysters have lost their ancestral foundation in ancient subtidal reef structures, and tribes throughout the Chesapeake Bay have lost access to ancestral land and waters that formed our culture.
This photo shows the hands of multiple generations of Nansemond people holding spat on oyster shells.
For these reasons, our environmental goals emphasize the importance of culture in river stewardship and ecological balance. Culture upholds the close relationship to the environment that has been missing from the economic systems that exploited it. Being present on the Nansemond River, and conscious of our ecosystem, revitalizes the culture that sustained our ancestors for thousands of years. Likewise, being present as partners with local community groups helps us understand each other, unite around our shared love for the Chesapeake Bay, and heal.
Thank you for reading our story, and we invite you to stay connected with us on our journey.
