By the end of Queen Anne's War (1702-1713), the Pennacook had largely been absorbed into the Abenaki. What language did the Pennacook tribe speak? The Pennacook tribe spoke in the Algonquian language family and were members of the Wabenaki Confederacy. The name Pennacook comes from the Abenaki word 'penakuk' meaning "at the bottom of the hill." The people are also referred to as the Merrimack and the Pawtucket. What was the lifestyle and culture of the Pennacook tribe? The Pennacook tribe were primarily fishers, farmers and hunter gatherers. The Pennacook mainly lived in wigwams made of birchbark but as inter-tribal warfare increased they also lived in fortified villages of longhouses. The 1600's saw the French establish New France and the English settled in the present-day US states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts encroaching on Pennacook lands. The Europeans brought terrible diseases such as typhus, smallpox, measles, influenza and diphtheria and a series of epidemics killed nearly 75% of the Pennacook people. The French and Indian Wars (1688-1763) raged for 75 years as France and England fought for the new lands in North America. The Pennacook become allies of the French. The French defeat in the wars and inter-tribal warfare resulted in the dispersal of the remaining Pennacook people who, by the end of Queen Anne's War (1702-1713), had been largely absorbed into the Abenaki who relocated to Canada. The descendants of the Pennacook tribe live amongst the Abenaki at St. Francis and Wollinak (Becancour) in Quebec. Other Pennacook descendents are based in Manchester, New Hampshire and in Franklin, Massachusetts. Where did the Pennacook tribe live? The Pennacook are people of the Northeast Woodland Native American cultural group. The geography of the region in which they lived dictated the lifestyle and culture of the Pennacook tribe who primarily inhabited the Merrimack River valley. - The Northeast Woodland region extended mainly across the New England States, lower Canada, west to Minnesota, and north of the Ohio River
- Land: Lush woodlands, rivers, ocean
- Climate: The climate varied according to the location of the tribe
- Land Animals: The animals included white-tailed deer, raccoon, bears, beavers, squrrel moose, and caribou
- Fish and Sea Mammals: Whales, Seal, Fish and shell fish
- Crops: The crops grown in the area were corn (maize), pumpkin, squash, beans and tobacco
- Trees: Poplar, birch, elm, maple, oak, pine, fir trees and spruce
What clothes did the Pennacook wear? The picture shows Chief Passaconaway and the clothes worn by Pennacook Native Indians. During the hot summer the Pennacook men wore a breechcloth tucked over a belt that hung to mid-thigh from the back with fringed leggings that tapered towards the ankle. Moccasins were made with a long tongue and a high collar that could be left up or folded down. Snowshoes were also worn during the winter. The Pennacook women wore deerskin wrap-around skirts, poncho style and also wore leggings. In the winter cloaks or mantles were worn by both men and women. The Pennacook also wore highly distinctive, pointed or peaked hoods made from birch bark or leather that covered the shoulder were elaborately decorated with feathers at the point. |