Wampanoag Indian Pow Wow.

The Wampanoag are a federally recognized Native American nation which currently consists of five tribes, located in present-day Massachusetts. Two have gained official federal recognition.

In the 1600s when encountered by the English, the Wampanoag lived in southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, as well as within a territory that encompassed current day Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. Their population numbered in the thousands due to the richness of the environment and their cultivation of corn, beans and squash; it was 3,000 on Martha's Vineyard alone.

From 1616-1619 the Wampanoag suffered an epidemic of what researchers now believe was leptospirosis, a bacterial infection also known as Weil's syndrome or 7-day fever. While it may have been carried by the English, it may also have arisen from factors in the Wampanoag environment and their contact with diseased animals. It caused a high fatality rate and nearly destroyed the society. This crisis contributed to the conversion of Wampanoag to Christianity, as they began to doubt the power of their own traditions. During the early decades of English colonization, relations were friendly, but the nation began to resist colonial encroachment. Historians believe the losses from the epidemic made it possible for the English colonists to get a foothold in creating the Massachusetts Bay Colony in later years. King Philip's War (1675-1676) against the English colonists resulted in the deaths of 40% of the tribe Most of the male survivors were sold into slavery in the West Indies. Many women and children were enslaved in New England.

While the tribe largely disappeared from historical records from the late 18th century, its people persisted. Survivors remained in their traditional areas and continued many aspects of their culture, while absorbing other people by marriage and adapting to changing economic and cultural needs in the larger society. The chief groups of Wampanoag began to re-organize their governments in the late twentieth century, although only one has reservation land. They are seeking to acquire land to be held in trust to enable Indian gaming to generate revenue for the nation. ~ Wikipedia.