Module Overview: Early American Colonial Encounters and the Saltwater Frontier

Re-evaluating Early American Narratives

• Conventional Narrative Critique: The traditional story of American expansion, focusing on reaching the Pacific Coast, is incomplete and favors the British. It also problematically views early America as merely a prelude to the United States, which is a hindsight-biased and a-historical perspective (confusing before with cause and effect).
• Historical Causation: It's crucial to identify actual causes of events like the American Revolution rather than assuming everything from Jamestown or Plymouth inherently leads to the United States. Connections must be reasoned, not assumed.

Land and Sea: The Saltwater Frontier

• Theme: Today's theme, "Land and Sea," highlights coastlines as primary sites of encounter.
• Saltwater Frontier Concept: Andrew Littman describes the Northeastern Coastline (from Manhattan to Cape Cod) as a "saltwater frontier." This concept emphasizes the ocean and coastal waterways as the main spheres of contact and conflict.
• Primary Entities: The main entities active in this saltwater frontier between the $16$th and $18$th centuries were:
  • Algonquin-speaking peoples
  • The Dutch
  • The English

Colonial Terminology and Concepts

These definitions are specific to the colonial North American context:

• Frontier:
  • Refers to a moving boundary between European and indigenous territories.
  • Sites of intercultural interaction and exchange, but with a conceptual boundary in the minds of both entities.
  • Frederick Jackson Turner's Old View: Previously considered a "periphery of civilization," a "meeting point between savagery and its civilization." The goal was to integrate frontiers into civilized society.
  • Modern Understanding: Now understood as a boundary where continuous intercultural exchange occurs.
• Borderland:
  • The most popular term among historians.
  • A "zone of interaction" that surrounds borders (and can include them).
  • Key Aspect: Cohabitation: A site cohabited by different entities (e.g., Europeans and Native Americans).
  • Implication: Cohabitation reveals the ambiguous and contested nature of territorial claims and the contingency of who truly controls the zone at any given time.
• Border:
  • Refers to a straight line, typically settled between nation-states.
  • Becomes the prevalent concept of territorial relationship as colonial America transitions into nation-states.
• Re-examining Maps: Applying these concepts helps us interpret historical maps differently.
  • Traditional maps show solid territorial claims by French, English, and Spanish entities (e.g., "New Spain," "New France," "British America").
  • However, superimposing these claims onto maps of diverse Indian tribes, cultures, and languages reveals a much "messier" picture, showing cohabitation and tenuous, contested claims.

Local Indigenous History Acknowledgment

• The classroom is situated on land formerly claimed and inhabited by the Catawba Nation.
• Resource Recommendation: Dr. Rose Stremlaut offers classes on the Native South, including ethnobotany projects (e.g., growing Catawba corn) in collaboration with the biology department, starting from next fall.

The Northeastern Coastline: A Deeper Look

• The author defines the "saltwater frontier" along the Northeastern Coastline, specifically from Manhattan to Cape Cod.
• Contesting Entities in the $17$th Century:
  • The Dutch (Dutch West India Company):
    • Established New Netherland in $1624$, starting at the southern tip of Manhattan, extending along the Hudson River, and eventually claiming territories up to Cape Cod.
    • Wealth Source: Primarily the fur trade.
    • Population: Relatively small, around $9,000$ people at its height, due to the prosperity of the Dutch Empire providing few "push factors" for emigration.
  • The English (Puritans):
    • Settled nearby, with Plymouth established in $1620$ and the Massachusetts Bay Colony in $1629$.
    • Founders: Puritans seeking religious freedom.
    • Economy: More diverse, including farming, fishing, and trade.
    • Population: Generally more populated than New Netherland or other European colonies like New Spain and New France.
  • Algonquin-speaking People:
    • Included various indigenous tribes (e.g., Wampanoag, Massachusetts, Narragansett, Pequot) along the East Coast from the Lower Hudson Valley to Northern New England.
    • Culture & Economy: Diverse, characterized by fishing, farming, and hunter-gathering, utilizing both land and sea resources extensively.
• Historical Documentation: The history of this region is well-known due to:
  • Extensive archives from the Dutch (West India Company) and British Empires.
  • Active engagement and documentation by indigenous peoples themselves.
• Wampoms:
  • Traditional shell beads (shells).
  • Used for storytelling and ceremonial gifts.
  • Initially mistaken by European traders as currency, but held significant value.
  • Example: A wampum belt gifted to William Penn to commemorate the Great Treaty in $1682$. These are material evidence of indigenous storytelling and record-keeping, challenging the notion that Native Americans only relied on oral history.
  • Popular among Northeastern native tribes, including Algonquin-speaking people and the Iroquois.

Littman's Maritime Interpretation

• Novelty: Littman's focus on maritime culture was new because previous scholars, when studying colonial projects, predominantly focused on land (where settlements were established).
• Shift in Perspective: Littman shifts attention to the "in-between spaces" of land and water, transforming the sea into an area of contact and conflict, thus deepening the understanding of settlements near water.
• Natives as Navigators: This interpretation is possible by recognizing native peoples not just as hunter-gatherers or farmers, but as skilled navigators, boat-builders, fishermen, and merchants. This echoes earlier discussions of Native Americans as seafarers (e.g., John White's watercolors reproduced by Theodore De Bry).
• Discussion Points (Pros and Cons):
  • Convincing Aspect (Native Advantage): Native Americans, with superior knowledge of coastal geography, had an advantage over Europeans, even teaching them. This geographical knowledge became crucial, especially in conflicts like King Philip's War where Europeans targeted canoes.
  • Less Persuasive Aspect (Risk of Neglect): Over-prioritizing the coastline might lead to ignoring significant events and dynamics happening inland.
• Value of Multiple Interpretations: While colonial settlements were on land, understanding the maritime world (which influenced trade, land, and resources) provides crucial context for conflicts between Native Americans and Europeans. It invites consideration of various factors (e.g., maritime trade, supply ships) that both sides weighed during war, enriching our understanding of historical events without necessarily changing outcomes.
• Conclusion: The maritime world mattered significantly to both Europeans andespecially Native Americans, who were seafarers and active participants in coastal trades, and this aspect should not be forgotten.

Chesapeake Bay: Jamestown and Early English Settlement

• Shift Southward: Moving from the Northeastern Coastline to the Chesapeake Bay.
• Virginia Company (1606): Chartered to establish the first permanent English colony.
• Roanoke Island (The Lost Colony): The English were aware of dangers from the failure of the Roanoke Island colony in present-day Dare County, North Carolina, a few decades prior. The disappearance of its inhabitants remains an unsolved historical mystery.
• Strategic Selection of Jamestown: To avoid past failures, the English carefully selected Jamestown for its ideal settlement location:
  • Defense: Positioned on the end of a peninsula, making it easier to defend from attacks by other European states (like the Spanish in nearby Florida, or the French and Dutch).
  • Deep Water Anchorage: Provided a secure, defensible location for ships to offload essential supplies and provisions from Europe, especially vital during early years before colonists understood local resources.
  • Perceived Unoccupied Land: Initially believed to be "empty" of native tribes, thus considered safe from Native American attack (though this proved quickly untrue).
• James Fort Architecture: The initial triangular fort format of Jamestown (originally "James Fort") reflected its primary purpose: defense.
  • Settlements were built within the fort.
  • The architecture (e.g., towers for vantage points) demonstrated the crucial importance of defense against both Native Americans and other European colonists for a settlement to prosper.
• John Smith's Views: In his work, "The General History of Virginia, New England, and the Summer Islands" (referring to the Bermuda Islands), John Smith outlined factors for a good fort:
  • Access to water (pleasant plain, nearby river, wholesome air, sweet springs).
  • Access to resources (wood, pasture, marsh).
  • Emphasis on defense and survival, not only against famine/weather but also against literal enemies, primarily Native Americans, as he extensively documented.
• Powhatan Tribe: Jamestown was surrounded by powerful native tribes, notably the Powhatan (of which Pocahontas, daughter of Chief Powhatan, was a part).
• Strategic Expansion: European colonies, initially lacking manpower and geographical understanding, did not have an inherent advantage. Thus, the selection of sites like Jamestown, Plymouth, and Massachusetts Bay Colony was highly strategic, prioritizing safety from Native Americans to secure and enable future prosperity.