NOTE VENUE CHANGE: First Congregational Church, 68 Main Street, Falmouth
This largely-forgotten war was one of America’s first and costliest. It started in 1675 when the leader of the Wampanoag tribe began an uprising to take back some of the land the colonial settlers controlled. His native name was Metacom; the English called him Philip. Ironically, he was the son of Massasoit, the sachem who helped the pilgrims get established. Soon the Nipmucks and tribes along the Connecticut River joined the Wampanoags. Battles raged from Rhode Island to Maine. The colonists, not without losses, slaughtered thousands of natives, sold many into slavery in the West Indies and drove out the rest, clearing New England of its native populations. The victors even paraded King Philip’s head around the streets of Plymouth in a barbarous show of triumph. And, sadly, the terror continued. This war served as the brutal model for dealing with native people across the United States from that point on.
Eight Cousins Books, our co-host, will have copies of this book at the talk. The book will also be available in the store at 189 Main Street in Falmouth.