Shanawdithit
Shanawdithit, born around 1801, was the last known member of the Beothuk people, an Indigenous group from Newfoundland, Canada. The Beothuks, who once thrived as hunter-gatherers, faced devastating challenges following the arrival of British settlers in the seventeenth century, which led to a drastic decline in their population. As white settlements encroached upon their territory, the Beothuks lost access to vital food sources, resulting in starvation and violence. Throughout her life, Shanawdithit witnessed the brutal treatment of her people, including the murder of her uncle and the capture of her aunt.
By the early 1800s, the Beothuk community was reduced to a mere dozen individuals, with Shanawdithit and her family struggling to survive. In her later years, she collaborated with William Eppes Cormack of the Beothuk Institution, sharing her people's stories and creating sketches that documented their culture and injustices. Despite her significant contributions, Shanawdithit succumbed to tuberculosis in 1829 at the age of twenty-eight. Her legacy remains as a crucial source of knowledge about the Beothuk people, highlighting both their rich cultural history and the tragic consequences of colonialism.
Shanawdithit
Member of the Beothuk people
- Born: 1801
- Birthplace: Newfoundland, Canada
- Died: June 6, 1829
- Place of death: St. John's, Newfoundland
Also known as: Nancy Shanawdithit, Nancy April, Shawnadithititis, Shawnawdithit
Significance: Shanawdithit (also spelled Shawnawdithit) was the last known member of a tribe of Newfoundland aboriginals known as the Beothuks, or Red Indians. Following the arrival of European settlers to the region, the Beothuk population gradually declined because of violence and starvation. With the help of a philanthropist, Shanawdithit was able to preserve her culture's history before succumbing to tuberculosis at age twenty-eight.
Background
Shanawdithit was born near a lake in Newfoundland about 1801. She was a member of the Beothuks, the aboriginal people of Newfoundland, Canada. The group of hunter-gatherers once dominated the island, sustaining themselves on sea birds, seals, salmon, shellfish, and caribou. The Beothuk lifestyle drastically changed following the arrival of British settlers to Newfoundland in the seventeenth century. Beothuk numbers steadily decreased in the years to follow. White settlements cut them off from the sea, their primary source of food. They were also driven deeper inland by furriers and trappers, who exploited the wildlife Beothuk's commonly relied on for meat.
At the time of her birth, Shanawdithit was one of the few remaining members of her people. The beginning of the nineteenth century saw the Beothuks trying to survive along the inland portion of the Exploits River located in northeast Newfoundland. Any attempt to gather food from the sea was met with hostility from the new settlers, who often accused the Beothuks of being thieves. Beothuks were regularly subjected to brutal attacks and beatings for trying to curtail fur trapper activities. Shanawdithit was the victim of one of these attacks as a young girl. She was shot while washing her venison meat in the river. The bullets did not fatally wound her, however. Killing Beothuks became a sport for the white settlers, who often bragged about the number of aboriginals they had killed. The governor of the Newfoundland colony also began offering rewards for the capture of live Beothuks for translation purposes.
Life's Work
By 1811, only about seventy-five Beothuks were left on the island of Newfoundland. Shanawdithit had lived with the fear of being attacked or murdered by a settler for her entire life. Her people had to be extremely careful when gathering food and remain hidden from any predatory settlers. This practice severely limited their food supply, and many Beothuks regularly starved to death. As a teenager, Shanawdithit witnessed the death of her uncle Nonosbawsut, chief of the Beothuks, as he was shot down trying to prevent his wife Demasduit's kidnapping. Demasduit's young child died without his mother, and Shanawdithit's aunt was later returned to her people in a coffin.
Beothuk numbers continued to dwindle over the next few years. By the end of 1823, only about a dozen Beothuks from Shanawdithit's village were still alive and many were dying of hunger. Shanawdithit's uncle and cousin attempted a trip to the coast to gather food for their village but were shot by white fishermen and never returned. Shanawdithit's father later disappeared after setting out to hunt deer. Shanawdithit, her mother, and her sister began traveling along the bay coast in search of food. The women were discovered by a furrier named William Cull, who spared their lives for the reward. As she was taken away, Shanawdithit caught the last glimpse of her father as he fell through thin ice while running from a group of trappers shooting at him.
Shanawdithit and her family were taken to the city of St. John's where the governor swiftly ordered they be returned to their home. The women were given a small amount of provisions and a boat to return to their village, but their journey was unsuccessful. They returned to St. John's in worse condition than before. Shanawdithit's mother and sister had contracted tuberculosis and died soon after arriving back on St. John. The last known survivor of the Beothuk people, Shanawdithit was renamed Nancy April by the British authority and taken to Exploits Island where she was placed in a household to work as a servant. Shanawdithit spent the next five years working on Exploits Island.
In 1828, Shanawdithit traveled back to St. John's to meet with William Eppes Cormack, president of the Beothuk Institution. The institution aimed to set up better communications between the settlers and the Beothuks while also collecting historical information about the aboriginal peoples. Shanawdithit stayed with Cormack for about a year, relaying stories about her people and drawing sketches about their way of life. She also provided accounts of the many injustices committed against them following white settlement. Shanawdithit developed tuberculosis in 1829 and was cared for in the home of St. John's attorney general before being transferred to a hospital. She died on June 6, 1829, at the age of twenty-eight.
Impact
Without the cooperation between Shanawdithit and Cormack's Beothuk Institution, the history of the Beothuk may have died with its people. Her story also brought attention to the horrible treatment perpetrated against the Beothuks by the European settlers of Newfoundland. Shanawdithit's maps, sketches, and stories are the last known records of the Beothuk people's language and customs. Following her death, Cormack lamented his friend's life and the tragedy of her people, openly shaming the British settlers for their actions against the Beothuks.
Personal Life
Shanawdithit died unmarried and was the last known survivor of her people at the time of her death.
Bibliography
"The Beothuk ("Boeothick") Institution." Heritage Newfoundland and Labrador, www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/aboriginal/beothuk-institution.php. Accessed 1 Mar. 2017.
"Disappearance of the Beothuk." Heritage Newfoundland and Labrador, www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/aboriginal/beothuk-disappearance.php. Accessed 1 Mar. 2017.
Marsh, James H. "Shawnadithit: Last of the Beothuk." Canadian Encyclopedia, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/shawnadithit-last-of-the-beothuk-feature/. Accessed 1 Mar. 2017.
Merna, Forster. 100 Canadian Heroines: Famous and Forgotten Faces. Dundurn, 2004.
"Shawnadithit (Nancy, Nance April)." Dictionary of Canadian Biography,www.biographi.ca/en/bio.php?id‗nbr=3128. Accessed 1 Mar. 2017.