Assateague people facts for kids

The Assateague people were a Native American tribe. Their name means "swiftly moving water." They were part of the Algonquian language group and spoke the Nanticoke language. Historically, they lived along the Atlantic coast of the Delmarva Peninsula. This area is now parts of Maryland, Virginia, and Delaware.

While some people today might have distant family ties to the Assateague, the tribe itself no longer exists as a distinct cultural group.

Assateague Culture and Life

The Assateague people lived off the land and water around Chincoteague Bay. They used resources from the sea and the forests. One important activity was making and trading beads from shells. These shell beads were valuable for trade.

Assateague History with Europeans

Early Treaties: 1662 Agreement

In 1662, the English colony of Maryland made a treaty with the Assateague and Nanticoke tribes. This agreement had several rules:

• English colonists who received land in Assateague territory had to give the Assateague chief six "matchcoats." These were warm blankets or heavy cloth garments.
• If the Assateague returned someone who had escaped from slavery, they would receive one matchcoat.
• Neither side was allowed to commit murders.
• English colonists needed a special pass to enter Assateague land.
• The Assateague were not to trade with Dutch colonists in Delaware, as long as Maryland could provide what they needed.

After this, other treaties were signed. One treaty in the late 1600s ordered the Assateague to live on five reservations along the Pocomoke River. The Assateague chief, Amonugus, signed this treaty. It seemed the "Emperor of the Assateagues" had power over the chiefs of the Chincoteague and Pocomoke tribes.

During this time, the Assateague often complained to the Maryland government. They said colonists were letting their cattle eat their corn, breaking their animal traps, cutting their trees, and taking their land. In 1686, the Assateague even reported that colonists had built homes in their villages.

Peace Treaty of 1722

In 1722, a new peace treaty was signed. The leaders were Knosulm (also called M. Walker) for the Assateague, Wassounge (also called Daniel) for the Pocomoke, and Charles Calvert, the governor of Maryland. This treaty was meant to last forever. It aimed to forget past conflicts and set new rules:

• Any Native American who killed a colonist had to be brought to the governor as a prisoner.
• Native Americans could not enter a colonial settlement with painted faces or weapons. They had to lay down their weapons and call out to identify themselves before approaching.
• If a colonist killed a Native American who followed these rules, the colonist would face death.
• If a Native American and a colonist met by chance in the woods, the Native American had to immediately put down their weapons. If not, they would be seen as hostile.
• The colonial government would give permission to individual Native Americans for crabbing, hunting, and fishing.
• Any Native American who killed or stole a farm animal or other goods would be punished like a colonist.
• People who had escaped from their masters and found shelter in Assateague territory had to be returned to the nearest colonial settlement for a reward.
• The Native Americans could not sign new peace treaties with the governor's enemies or go to war without his permission.
• If the Assateague and Pocomoke killed any Native American protected by the governor, it was as serious as killing a colonist.
• Any foreign Native Americans coming into the area had to be reported to a colonial official right away.

In return for the governor's protection, the Assateague and Pocomoke tribes had to give the Proprietor of Maryland two bows and two dozen arrows every year on October 10th.

Life at Askiminokonson

The Maryland colonial government tried to gather local Native American tribes into one settlement. This included the Assateague and Pocomoke tribes. The colonists called this place Indian Town, but the Native Americans called it Askiminokonson. By 1671, it was the largest Native American settlement in Maryland. It became a reservation in 1686. Askiminokonson was located near what is now Snow Hill, Maryland.

In 1742, unusual movements by the Native Americans worried the colonists. They found out that some chiefs had been part of a plan for a general uprising, led by a Shawnee chief named Messowan. Because of this, the Maryland government ended the Assateague's "empire." The title of "Emperor" became just an honorary title. Each town then reported directly to the provincial government.

Many Assateague people wanted to move away. By the end of that decade, a large group of Assateague had moved to the Susquehanna region. There, they became part of the Iroquois group. This group slowly moved north, and their descendants are now in Ontario, Canada. Some Assateague stayed in Maryland. One group lived on the Choptank reserve until 1798. Another small group, who had lost much of their original culture, lived near the Indian River in Delaware.