Penobscot (tribe)
The Penobscot Tribe, whose name translates to "people of the rocky place," is an Indigenous group located in Maine, specifically along the Penobscot River and Bay. As part of the eastern branch of the Abenaki family and belonging to the Algonquian language group, the Penobscots have a rich cultural heritage and history. With approximately 2,398 enrolled members as of 2020, the tribe has faced numerous challenges over the years, including loss of land, environmental pressures, and struggles for self-governance. Unlike some neighboring tribes who migrated due to colonial pressures, the Penobscots remained on their ancestral lands, playing a significant role during events like the American Revolutionary War.
Historically, their traditional lifestyle began to decline in the early 1800s due to overhunting and deforestation, further exacerbated by events like the Great Miramichi Fire. The tribe faced economic hardships and isolation, particularly in the 20th century, although legislative efforts in the 1960s and 1980s led to significant financial settlements and improvements in living conditions. Modern challenges include legal disputes over fishing rights, which are vital for their sustenance and cultural identity. As of 2022, the Penobscot Tribe continues to seek recognition and protection of their traditional rights amidst ongoing legal battles related to their riverine resources.
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Penobscot (tribe)
- CATEGORY: Tribe
- CULTURE AREA: Northeast
- LANGUAGE GROUP: Algonquian
- PRIMARY LOCATION: Maine
- POPULATION SIZE: 2,398 enrolled members (2020 Wabanaki Alliance)
The Penobscots, of the eastern branch of the Abenaki family, whose name means “people of the rocky place,” live along the river and the bay that bear their name on the Maine coast.
Tradition says that prophecies foretold the coming of White men, who would bring a time of trouble because of their desire for the land. Unlike some other Abenaki, who gave up their New England homelands and migrated north under pressure from White settlers, the Penobscots remained in their original area. During the American Revolutionary War, the Penobscots helped turn back the British, and Chief Joseph Orono was rewarded with a visit to Boston, Massachusetts, and Newport, Rhode Island.
Their traditional lifestyle began to die out in the early 1800s, as overhunting and increased lumbering diminished the profitable fur trade and traditional game hunting. The Great Miramichi Fire in 1825, although mainly centered in Canada, destroyed some of the Maine woodland; disease also took its toll on the Indigenous nation. Under economic and political pressure, the Penobscots sold much of their land. The last hereditary lifetime chief was Joseph Attean, chosen in 1858, who is mentioned as a guide by Henry David Thoreau in his book The Maine Woods (1864).
By the beginning of the twentieth century, many of the Penobscots lived in poverty and isolation on an island in the river near Old Town. Maine granted Indigenous Americans voting privileges only in 1954—the last state to do so. In 1965, Maine became the first state to establish a Department of Indian Affairs, and in 1980, a lengthy legal battle resulted in the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act, which allocated $81.5 million to the Penobscots and two other Maine Indigenous nations. The money was used to purchase land, improve housing and schools, and build a factory and a gambling casino to provide employment. In the 2010 US Census, 610 members, or over a quarter of the population, lived on reservation land, where the schools taught traditional arts and language.
In addition to the challenges mentioned above, the Penobscots faced environmental pressures, including dams, water pollution, loss of fur-bearing animals such as caribou and moose, and conflicts over water rights, all of which threatened the nation's traditional livelihoods and artisanal activities. In 2012, the attorney-general for the state of Maine challenged the Penobscots' practice of fishing without permits along the Penobscot River, home to their reservation and hundreds of other islands belonging to the nation. The Penobscot Nation went to court to prevent the state from regulating their use of the waters surrounding their lands, particularly the fishing rights guaranteed by the Settlement Act. To the Penobscots, the matter was vital to their continued sustenance, identity as a riverine people, and self-governance. In 2015, a US District Court judge found that the Settlement Act did not grant control of the waters to the Penobscots but affirmed their continued unimpeded access for sustenance fishing. The Penobscots and the state appealed to the US Circuit Court of Appeals in April 2016. In 2017, a federal court ruled the Penobscots’ hunting and fishing rights were limited to the islands and did not include the totality of the Penobscot River. In 2022, lawyers for the Penobscots began appealing the decision.
Bibliography
Chavaree, Mark. "We Are a Riverine People: The Penobscot Nation of Maine." Cultural Survival, 3 June 2014, www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/we-are-riverine-people-penobscot-nation-maine. Accessed 23 Oct. 2024.
Harrison, Judy. "State Appeals Ruling Over Whether Tribe Owns Water in Penobscot." Bangor Daily News, 28 Apr. 2016, www.bangordailynews.com/2016/04/28/bangor/state-appeals-ruling-over-whether-tribe-owns-water-in-penobscot-river. Accessed 23 Oct. 2024.
"Indian Reservation, Penobscots." Maine: An Encyclopedia, maineanencyclopedia.com/indian-reservation-penobscots/. Accessed 23 Oct. 2024.
Pawling, Micah A. Wabanaki Homeland and the New State of Maine: The 1820 Journal and Plans of Survey of Joseph Treat. U of Massachusetts P, 2007.
"Penobscot Nation, penawahpkekeyak." Wabanaki Alliance, www.wabanakialliance.com/penobscot-nation. Accessed 23 Oct. 2024.
"Tribal Timeline." Penobscot Nation, www.penobscotnation.org/departments/cultural-historic-preservation/historic-preservation/tribal-timeline/. Accessed 23 Oct. 2024.
Zamore, Allegra. "Battle Over Penobscot River Ownership Returns to Federal Court." WABI, 22 Sept. 2020, www.wabi.tv/2020/09/22/battle-over-penobscot-river-ownership-returns-to-federal-court. Accessed 23 Oct. 2024.