Isolated Pamunkey tribe in Virginia finally recognized by U.S.
PAMUNKEY RESERVATION, Va. — The tidal river that surrounds this spit of scrubby land has long functioned like a moat that rises and falls through the day.
A single road connects the reservation's sycamore, poplars and modest houses with miles of cornfields that separate the tribe from large retail stores and suburban office parks of eastern Virginia.
The Pamunkey have lived on and around these 1,200 acres for centuries, since before their most famous ancestor, Pocahontas, made contact with English colonists in 1607.
"We call this downtown Pamunkey," said Kim Cook, the 50-year-old granddaughter of Chief Tecumseh Deerfoot Cook.
She smiled. The only noise came from birds chirping among the pines by the old fishing shanties. The only action came when a cousin stopped by to relieve Cook's 8-year-old son, River Ottigney Cook, of his boredom by taking him on a boat ride.
Otherwise, Cook sat alone under a pavilion beneath a ceiling fan, not far from a small pier used to fish for shad, glancing at her smartphone as she talked about her family's, and the tribe's, history.
It's a history that can appear contradictory: the tribe's isolation has protected it, while its members have needed to live elsewhere for long stretches to find work. Marrying outsiders has sustained the small Pamunkey population, yet the tribe has maintained rules restricting the practice. They have withstood attempts to erase their identity and been accused of discriminating against others.
And although the tribe is one of the most storied in history, it was not until last month, more than 450 years after signing their first treaty with the king of England, that the Pamunkey Indians were recognized by the U.S. government.
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/isolated-pamunkey-tribe-in-virginia-finally-recognized-by-us/ar-BBlnO6x
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