Sowams was a rich land, described as a “garden” by Miles Standish and prized by the Native tribes for its rich soil, abundant wildlife and access to the water that provided their food. A treaty in 1621 between the Pokanoket Tribe and the Plymouth Colony set in place a fifty-year period of peaceful relations. A breakdown in those relationships, however, followed Massasoit’s death in 1661 and led to the devastating two-year King Philip War and the eventual colonial domination of the land.

 

What followed were years of continual development, the growth of towns, and the gradual loss of much of the original natural abundance that the colonist first encountered. Dr. Weed will identify the vestiges of that original pristine land and the evidence of the first steps in 17th century colonial occupation that transformed Sowams into what we have today.

 

Dr. David S. Weed (drweed@cox.net) is a photographer, local historian, west wight potter sailor, low carb diet expert, retired community psychologist, and Coordinator of the Sowams Heritage Area Project.