Nottaway
The Nottaway are an indigenous group originally located in southeastern Virginia along the Nottaway River. They identified themselves as Cheroenhaka and were recognized by neighboring Algonquian tribes as Mangoac and Nadowa. The Nottaway lived in permanent villages, primarily engaged in agriculture, with corn being their crucial crop, while also participating in hunting and gathering. Their language belonged to the Iroquoian family and shared similarities with that of the Tuscarora tribe.
Initially, the Nottaway experienced limited impact from the expansion of the Jamestown colony, but as trade routes developed in the 17th century, tensions escalated with colonial settlers. Following Bacon's Rebellion in 1677, they faced increasing pressure and loss of land to colonists, leading to gradual displacement and intermarriage with free blacks and the adoption of European customs. By 1824, the Virginia legislature formally terminated their legal tribal status, and despite efforts to maintain their identity, the community diminished over time. The last individual to publicly claim Nottaway identity passed away in 1963, marking a significant end to their distinct cultural presence.
Nottaway
Category: Tribe
Culture area: Northeast
Language group: Iroquoian
Primary location: Virginia
The Nottaway, a branch of the Iroquoian language family, lived in southeastern Virginia on the Nottaway River. They called themselves Cheroenhaka but were known to the Algonquians as Mangoac and Nadowa (“adders,” a common name for non-Algonquian neighbors). They lived in permanent villages and maintained little contact between villages. They lived mainly by growing crops but were also skilled hunters and gatherers. Corn was the most important crop, and women and girls seem to have done most of the field work. The Nottaway dialect was similar to that of the Tuscarora, the largest of the early Iroquoian tribes of the Virginia-North Carolina coastal plain. The Nottaway were not much affected at first by the expanding of the Jamestown colony in the seventeenth century. As trade grew after 1650, however, and as a major trade route passed through Nottaway lands, tensions increased. In the aftermath of Bacon’s Rebellion in 1677, the Nottaway and their neighbors became subject to the dominance of the Virginia colonists. Through the next century they were pushed onto smaller and smaller allotments of land. They intermarried with free blacks and adopted European ways of life. In 1824 the Virginia legislature officially voted to terminate legal tribal status for the Nottaway. They tried for many years to maintain their identity and lasted longer than many of their neighbors, but intermarriage and geographical displacement made it impossible. William Lamb, the last person claiming Nottaway identity, died in 1963.
