Acknowledgement
We acknowledge the Indigenous peoples that are the original inhabitants of Turtle Island and what is now known as Massachusetts and Northampton. We also acknowledge the displacement of Indigenous communities at the hands of European colonists. Native peoples and their descendants are still part of the Connecticut River Valley community, and we respect that.
Why
We feel this acknowledgement is important because native communities have so successfully and carefully stewarded the land for generations, and we hope to honor that knowledge and tradition as Broad Brook Coalition. Thousands of people spend time in these woods annually, and we feel it is crucial for visitors to know the Indigenous history of this area.
History
Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area is located near to where the Indigenous communities of the Nipmuc, Nonotuck, and Pocumtuck lived. Different Indigenous communities settled around the Oxbow to FLCA’s south and in Deerfield to its north. While there was never a permanent native settlement in Northampton, there was an Indigenous encampment at Fort Hill for a period of time, and many native families lived and worked in the area. A large number of Indigenous artifacts were recently discovered on the edge of FLCA at a site that is estimated by archaeologists to be 10,000 years old.
Learn More
We encourage visitors to explore the following resources to learn more
- Works of Margaret Bruchac, Indigenous Historian
- Native Presence in Nonotuck and Northampton: 2004. Margaret M. Bruchac.
- Nolumbeka Project, local group that celebrates the histories, cultures, and persistence of Northeastern Indigenous Peoples.
- Reports on Archeological Site
- News on archeological site at proposed King St. roundabout