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blogbrainsmall.jpgSeacoast History Blog #24
December 29, 2008

If you’re following the evolving story of St. Aspinquid of Agamenticus, here’s where we stand. Don Awalt of Nova Scotia has convinced me that he was real, not imaginary, and that he was not Passaconnaway, as local white historians have long claimed. He may very well be a holy man named Abinquid. The two legends and names are a close match. Don’s most recent letter – enclosed here – helps explain why. (Continued below)

 

Tarrantine, Micmac or Penobscot?

I would deeply love to see this legend sorted out in my lifetime. It has been twisting in the wind for too long. I don’t for a minute believe that the body of Abinquid (Aspinquid) is buried under the disputed pile of rocks atop Mt. Agamenticus. But it makes sense, if you follow Don’s logic, that Abinquid, who we know was murdered at the fort at Pemaquid by Basco Chub, might well have been carried for burial to York, Maine, the place of his vision. And even if his body was delivered elsewhere, the legend that evolved still resonates with Native Americans in Maine and Canada, and with white historians of New England. If nothing else, it is a powerful story that offers us a wellspring of information about Indian history and customs. And it is an opportunity to put together a complex puzzle that stretches from the Candlemas Massacre here in the seacoast to the Feast of St. Aspinquid in Halifax. It is rich, complex, dramatic and I hope a few Native American scholars will throw themselves into exploring the theory that Don Awalt has raised.

One nagging concern is the historical confusion over whether Abinquid was a Micmac or Penobscot. In order to make this legend plausible, we need to align it as close as possible to historical fact. But sometimes just talking about Native American history is like trying to use a dictionary with most of the pages missing. We lack even the words to have the discussion.

Native peoples during the "Contact Era" with Europeans do not fit into neat scholarly boxes. Groups move geographically. Languages differ. There is little, if any "documented" history. This is especially frustrating for modern researchers who like to categorize and label things down to the tiniest detail. Indian history is often sprawling, organic, intuitive, overlapping. The same people or geographical locations can have different names.

So, for the record, I want to offer Don Awalt’s commentary on my recent article in full. Perhaps there are breadcrumbs here, for those who might pick up this story and carry it on. Much of it is too complex for my brain.

But first let me remind seacoast locals about John Paul Jones. He took a ship built here and used it to attack the United Kingdom in 1779. They have their version of that story, and we have ours. In recent years, while sharing those versions of the same story, Portsmouth, NH and Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland have become "sister cities".

And don’t forget the Treaty of Portsmouth. In 1905 an agreement negotiated here ended the bloody Russo-Japanese War. By retelling that story in the 20th century, Portsmouth became a sister city with Nichinan In Japan. That connection and the study of the Treaty continues to this day.

This region has deep ties to Nova Scotia, especially to Halifax. After being ejected from Portsmouth in 1775, Royal Governor John wentworth, a Portsmouth native, became governor of Halifax. There may be a chance here, not just to revive the legend of Abinquid and to create a sacred Indian place atop Mount Agamenticus. Maybe we have a chance to create a deeper link between York, Maine and the Micmac of Nova Scotia and with other First Nation groups in Maine and Canada? Maybe we can ask them to tell their stories of this region, before the arrival of white settlers, during the great pandemic, the forced migration, the Indian reprisals.

It’s just a thought.

Now here is Don Awalt’s letter in full:

CONTINUED NEXT PAGE


December 2008 
Hey Dennis,

Just finished reading your article on Abinquid / Aspinquid. I enjoyed it very much and found it quite interesting, especially the material on the local history of York and Agamenticus, most of which was entirely new to me.

I do have a couple of comments though. I believe you inadvertently misquoted me as to where Abinquid came from. While there was once a strong oral tradition that he told the story of his vision and preached at Chebucto (Halifax) and Shubenacadie, Mi'kmaq oral tradition has Abinquid as being a Penobscot Micmac. They were the Majapqawlus (departs from clay) Mi'kmaq clans."

As opposed to for example ... the Kespek (last water) Mi'kmaq district which includes the Listuquj Clans in Gaspe Quebec and the Miramichi Clans in Northern New Brunswick. Or, also, the Unama'kik Mi'kmaq of Cape Breton and the Kespukwitk (Cape Sable) Mi'kmaq of the south shore of mainland Nova Scotia.

Traditional Mi'kmaq territory was fairly large. It included all the lands west of the St. John River in New Brunswick to the Atlantic including Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and Prince Edward Island and north of the St. John River in Maine to the St. Lawrence River. It grew for short period to include the Saguaney River Area in Quebec, Newfoundland (still does), the Penobscot and the Saco.

During the so called "Tarrentine Wars" (1607 - 1615 or 1607 -1619 or 1607 - 1622, depending on the ‘authority') the Tarrantines (another name for Mi'kmaq or Micmac) pretty much took control of the New England Coast from the mouth of the St. Croix to the Hudson River. They established themselves at Saco and the North side of the Penobscot and remained at the Penobscot until at least the early part of the twentieth century.

(For example ... Abram Hood, was born in 1853 in Nova Scotia and died in 1922. He was a well known guide and respected chief from Halfway River. He was the son of famed guide Stephen Hood Jeremy, born about 1819 at Penobscot, Maine and still alive on the 1881 census. This Steven Hood Jeremy was a seventh generation Penobscot Micmac according to his grandson Frank Hood.)

The relationship between the Abenake Penobscot and the Tarrantine Penobscot was turbulent to say the least until united by a common foe ... the English Colonizers.

The New England written record describes Abinquid as a Penobscot, Tarrantine, and a Penobscot Tarrantine. The record also shows him to be chief of the Penobscot, but is somewhat ambiguous. There is no way of telling if he was chief of the Tarrantine (Mi'kmaq) Penobscot, the Abenaki Penobscot, or a combination of both. I suspect the latter.

Oral tradition and the written tradition are in agreement here. I would argue strongly that Abinquid was a Penobscot Tarrantine (Mi'kmaq) and a Penobscot leader.

The Abenaki seemed to have no blood, race, or hereditary requirements for their war chiefs. The position seemed based on merit more so than anything else. So you have Mi'kmaq (Tarrantine) Abinquid as war chief of the Penobscot, his brother Egeremet was chief sachem of the Noridgwocks (Kennebeck).

Madokawando was clearly a Maliceet and yet appears to be Abinquid's successor as chief to the Penobscot. He was followed as chief of the Penobscot by Moxus, who in the written record is also called Agamagus (Mi'kmaq translated literally as "diving sea bird placed" ... obviously a description of a particular skill).

Before Egeremet was chief sachem of the Noridgwocks or perhaps overlapping, Wohawa Hopehood was their war chief and the record shows he was Huron. His father, called Robinhood, was chief of the Cannibas (a related and allied tribe to the Noridgwocks). According to Mather, "The Indians of Canada and the Five Nations were then at war, and he being in their country, was met by some of the Canada Indians (Mi'kmaq), who, taking him to be of the Iroquios Nation, slew him, and many of his companions."

Interestingly Mi'kmaq oral traditions from numerous source have kept this story alive. It is often described as the last incident of the Kwetejk Wars "The last two surviving old style Chiefs of that greatest of all Indian wars killed one another somewhere near Restigouche. Mejilapeka'tasiek (Tied in a hard knot) chief of the Micmac killed Wohooweh (Hopehood) the Kwetejk Chief in a tomahawk and knife fight in the morning. But he also died the following day. The Kwetejk and Micmac declared an end to the war.

(Variations of this story, some in much greater detail, include those told by Silas Rand in 1869, Joseph C. Cope in 1924, and Billy Labrador in 1982.) There is great debate by scholars over the precise identity of the "Kwetejk" but it is usually narrowed down to the "St. Lawrence" Iroquois, the Huron, the Mohawk, or perhaps a generic term for all three. It is also probable that this is the same Wahawa Hophood that is buried at Point Pleasant in Halifax (Chebucto), which is quite some distance from the Restigouche, which in turn is quite some distance from the Kennebeck region of Maine. Folk got around more in those days than now-a-days it would seem.

My second comment involves much less rambling on. I was very surprised that you did not mention the pilgrimage to Mount Agamenticus predates 1773. I personally think this would be very significant to the people of York and surrounding area.

Also I believe Agamenticus is spiritually significant to all the surrounding First Nations, including Pennacook, Noridgwocks, Penobscot, Passaquomoddy, Malisceet, and Mi'kmaq, just to name a few. As you wrote ... this is a wonderful opportunity for the town of York to recognize, preserve and celebrate its rich First Nations heritage ..., which encompasses far more than just the Mi'kmaq connections and Abinquid.

It may not have been intentional ... or maybe it was ... but more than just St. Aspinquid (Abinquid) is now part of the Agamenticus First Nation's heritage ... the Passaconaway and Wanalancet legends are now a part of the heritage of Agamenticus and York ... albeit not in the way the myth creators of the 1800s perhaps envisioned.

The earliest document I am aware of mentioning the Feast of Aspenquid dates to the early 1760's is by lieutenant governor Michael Franklin and is housed in the library at the Provincial Legislation Building ... not the easiest place to access nowadays.

The dating of the Feast of St. Aspinquid [in Halifax, Nova Scotia] to the time of Thury and Abinquid is easy. The old time chiefs and elders were an intelligent and non-gullible sort. There was no way they would have agreed to name an event as important as the Spring Feast after some "imaginary" Indian, much less an imaginary Mi'kmaq Saint. Many of these men would have known Abinquid personally ... others would have a first hand knowledge of him. This doesn't give and exact date on some piece of paper written once upon a time but does logically narrow the time period down to the short period of time Thury spent at Chebucto. This is the logic of all the Mi'kmaq Elders I have spoken with.

And what is it that makes a written tradition more reliable than an oral one? Both are as reliable as the individuals involved.

Also I found the local traditions fascinating and nothing in them to dispel the significance of Agamenticus to First Nations. I find myself especially interested in the 1890 photograph showing the earlier rock pile and stone obelisk. The potential that photo offers is right of the chart. Would love to see a copy. Bet Brian Spiritbear Michaud would like to see that too.

I like your theory that the story of the Indian Saint buried at Mount Agamenticus found its way back from Canada to York via returning prisoners ... makes sense ... Mi'kmaq frequently traveled to Quebec and Montreal ... probably less so to York.

Like the way you treated both religions and nationalities with respect.

I liked that you treated Abinquid with respect.

I liked that you treated Passaconaway with respect.

I really liked the fact that you presented a First Nations perspective in your article and treated it with respect.

Many make light of such things. Welal'in.

Good job ....

Don Byrd Awalt
Halifax, Nova Scotia

 

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