NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2016

YÉSAH

THE OCCANEECHI-SAPONI PEOPLE

Mécou Yésah,

I bring you greetings from your tribal community and hope that things have been well with you. The renovations to the tribal office have been completed and we now have additional space to hold meetings and events. The OBSN would like to thank the American Indian Center and Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust for making this possible.

Our very first event took place on October 15, 2016 with a luncheon to honor our Elders. To see all the families that were in attendance for the ceremony was truly awesome. Twelve elders were honored and gifted with certificates and blankets. Honor songs were performed by Red Oak and they also did a giveaway to some tribal members. A splendid feast was provided by Brice Watkins, tribal member. Lawrence Dunmore said a prayer and a chant in Tutelo which brought us back to the days when our ancestors sang these songs. Relatives that had not seen each other for years were able to reunite and exchange information to stay in touch. This was all in the Creator’s plan to bring us together.

Family and friends honored their parents and grandparents by reading poems and letters that they wrote to them expressing how much they love them. It was hard to keep from crying but with that much love in the room you just could not help it. Leonard Martin told me stories of when he was in the war which I will cherish forever. Laffalo Jeffries told us exactly what he thinks about Columbus Day which brought laughter from the crowd.

Tribal family I want to thank you from my heart for your support of the Elder’s Luncheon and keep in mind that this is just the start of events that will be taking place here at the Tribal Grounds. We need your support to pay the monthly expenses, keep the grounds mowed and any repairs that we may need.

My cousin Richard Duck once told me “you might not see me every day, I might not call every day, but if you need me I’ll be there”. That is how I felt when I saw all those cars pull into the tribal grounds as my eyes filled with tears I said I knew they could come.

Yandowasteka

Vickie Jeffries/Tribal Administrator

Message from The Tribal Administrator INSIDE THIS EDITION

Tribal Administrator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

At Home with an Elder. . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Moments In History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Language/Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Hillsborough Village Dedication . . . .10

Native Café Foods . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

TRIBAL VISION Occaneechi Band of the Saponi

Nation will be a unified and self-reliant tribe.

TRIBAL MISSION STATEMENT

The Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation is continuously committed to the preservation, protection and promotion of our history, culture and traditions; while providing social, economic and educational resources, opportunities and services that will contribute to the well-being of the tribal community.

TRIBAL COUNCIL Tony Hayes, Chair

Sharn Jeffries, Vice-Chair Vickie Jeffries, Tribal Adm.

Keshia Enoch

John “Blackfeather” Jeffries

Beverly Payne

At Home with Elder Elwood Whitmore NOV-DEC 2016

Elder Elwood Whitmore

Page 2

Mr. Whitmore was one of the elders that was honored on Saturday and he left his chair at the tribal grounds. I decided that I was going to take it to him since it was such a nice chair. So I put his address in my phone and then I was on my way. When I arrived at this house I rang the bell and stood for a moment and did not hear anything so I rang the bell again. Mr. Whitmore said come in and I introduced myself and he said have a seat.

When I sat down my journey of learning and respecting the wisdom of this elder started. He told me of his school days and how they had one room classroom, one teacher, and that it went only up to the seventh grade. Mr. Whitmore said that prema (not sure of the spelling) was another word for Head Start. He retold his days of planting tobacco and counting lumber. We looked at pictures of his family. He told me that he has lived in his house since 1946 and how much he paid for it back then. The wood around the doors that he crafted himself was beautiful. When I looked around the house my eyes fell upon the blanket that he received on Saturday that already had found a resting place on his bed.

When it was time for me to leave I thanked him for a wonderful afternoon and he said “go out there and get you some greens”. He reached in his pocket and gave me his pocket knife and a bucket and I happily went and picked some greens.

Respect, wisdom, strength, and courage is what I saw in Mr. Whitmore. I will be back to visit him even if I don’t have to bring him his chair.

Vickie Jeffries/Tribal Administrator

Log cabin on the property of Mr. Whitmore

Page 3

The Loss of the Saponi Nation Reservation December 10, 1730 ... on this date, 286 years ago, the Virginia House of Burgesses abrogated the Treaty of Peace with the Saponi Nation of Indians and dissolved the Fort Christianna reservation. This was done in response to requests for the reservation lands by several wealthy and opportunistic, colonial landowners. They were awarded the former reservation lands. The House of Burgesses justified this action by executing Article V of the 1713 Treaty of Peace which allowed that if the population of the reservation fell below a certain number, the treaty with Virginia could be abrogated. At the time of the abrogation of the treaty, the fort’s colonial rangers had failed to protect the Saponi during an escalating war of vengeance with the Nottoway and their allies the Six Nations. This war forced the Saponi to flee the reservation, going south to seek protection from their relatives in the Catawba Nation. The House of Burgesses claimed that the Saponi peoples had become part of the Catawba Nation and granted the several petitioners the reservation land. The Saponi Nation Reservation was the size of an English township or 6 miles-square (equivalent to an area of 36 square miles) and was located in Brunswick County, Virginia near the town of Lawrenceville.

Burlington Daily Times Newspaper

On December 12, 1938 the Burlington Daily Times Newspaper published an article about the "Texas" Indian community in Alamance County, North Carolina. The article described the Texas community as being old with distinct boundaries and a population of 1,500. The so called Texas Negroes were described as being of a definite Indian strain who originated in Eastern Virginia and migrated to the Alamance/Orange County area between the years 1790 and 1820. Families described as being part of the Texas community were Jeffries, Jones, Haith, Burnett, Hayes, Liggins, Wilson, Martin, and Anderson.

On November 8, 1737 some Saponi were reported on a deed living in Amelia County, Virginia near Winningham creek.

In November of 1755, the rape trial of The King vs. John Dungee was completed in the Brunswick County, Virginia Court. He plead not guilty but was convicted and received 30 lashes. He was identified specifically as a Mulatto.

Moments in Occaneechi-Saponi History ©Lawrence A. Dunmore, III

NOV-DEC 2016

NOV-DEC 2016

Moments in Occaneechi-Saponi History cont.

On December 22, 1777 the Brunswick County, Virginia Court bound out Charles Whitmore, a natural son of Agathy Whitmore deceased according to law. Order Book 13, page 177.

A December of 1798, Greensville County, Virginia deed from John and Judy Jeffries to Andrew Jeffries of eighty-four acres in Greensville County adjoining Shadrack Jeffries.

A December of 1798 Greensville County, Virginia deed from John Jeffries, Sr. and wife Judith to Andrew Jeffries. Forty acres in Greensville County adjoining Shadrack Jeffries, John Jeffries, Jr., and Simon Jeffries.

On November 7, 1840 Parker Jeffries was denied the right to vote in elections held in Greene County, Ohio. This led to court action.

On November 8, 1842 Abigail Chavers Guy, the widow of William Guy, referred to in U.S. Senate Document 144, 1897, was allowed a pension for his Revolutionary War service on her application for a widow's pension executed on this date.

In November of 1847, Abner Burnett was indicted in the Orange County, North Carolina court for carrying a gun and violating the Black codes. He plead not guilty but was convicted and fined $30.00.

On November 8, 1848 John C. Vincent's store ledger indicated that William Haithcock purchased 2 yards danstal, 3 pints whiskey, and 1 set of buttons on account.

In November of 1865 the case of Smith et al vs. Mortimer Jeffries arose. Again this case involved the right of suffrage of Indians. As in other cases involving Saponi migrants to the Midwest, Mr. Jeffries was victorious.

On November 3, 1868 William M. Jeffries was denied the right to vote in an election held in Rush County, Indiana. Mr. Jeffries filed a complaint for damages against the four judges of the election.

On December 16, 1868 the Alamance County North Carolina Commissioner's Minutes stated that there was a school on the church grounds of Mount Pisgah church. Mount Pisgah would later become Jeffries Cross Baptist Church.

Page 4

Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation Vs the North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs

On December 7, 1998, Judge Dolores Smith of the North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) released her decision in the case of the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation Vs the North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs over the State Indian Commission's continued denial of official State Tribal recognition to the Nation.

After initial proceedings began in February, 1997 and a failed attempted mediation, Judge Smith heard the case for one week in July of 1998. After deliberating for over four months, Judge Smith has found in the Occaneechi-Saponi peoples favor and made the following Recommendation: "That the North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs grant tribal recognition to the Petitioners".

The 41-page decision found very strongly in the Occaneechi-Saponi peoples favor and has now added official State backing to their ongoing fight for Official State recognition in North Carolina. The decision itself contains 242 Findings of Fact and 17 Conclusions of Law. In summation of the decision Judge Smith made the following CONCLUSIONS OF LAW: The Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation satisfied 6 of the 8 Criteria for Official State Recognition as a Tribe. Specifically, the Occaneechi-Saponi satisfied Criteria 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8.

In addition, Judge Smith made the following FINDINGS OF FACT:

#7 It is concluded that, since the Petitioning Group has satisfied three Criteria with the Commission, and an additional three criteria above, the Petitioning Group has met more than five of the eight criteria and satisfactorily meets the requirement of 1 NCAC 15 .0209.

#8 The requirement for a tribal roll showing kinship ties has been met pending submission of address of the tribal members on the tribal roll. #9 The Jeffries family has documented its ancestry from people on the current roll back more than 200 years to people identified as Indians. #14 It is shown by a preponderance of the evidence that this Petitioning Group traces back to the SAPONI and CATAWBA TRIBES, with the SAPONI TRIBE having subsumed both the TUTELO and OCCANEECHI Tribes.

#15 It is therefore concluded that the Petitioning Group has traced its ancestry back 200 years to tribes indigenous to North Carolina in satisfaction of the requirement of 1 NCAC 15 .0211.

NOV-DEC 2016

Moments in Occaneechi-Saponi History cont. Page 5

Moments in Occaneechi-Saponi History cont. NOV-DEC 2016 Page 6

Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation Vs the North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs cont.

#159 There was a continuous migration of both tribes and remnants of tribes. They banded together in an effort to find a safe and acceptable place to live and to survive in the face of increasing pressure from encroaching settlers and tribal population loss.

#210 It is found as fact that in the era of Fort Christianna, the OCCANEECHI and TUTELO along with other tribes were subsumed under the tribal name of SAPONI.

#236 The JEFFRIES family traces their heritage to the TUTELO-SAPONI and CATAWBA TRIBES. #242 Some of the evidence indicates an ancient tribal identity as CATAWBAN. In a summation submitted by the Petitioners address this ... The Occaneechi provided the Recognition Committee numerous documents proving that in the late 1700s and early 1800s the Catawba name did not designate a tribe so much as a CONFEDERATION of several tribes, including the Catawba proper.

When the Occaneechi were identified as Catawba and were identifying themselves as such, they were recognizing their relationship to the CATAWBA CONFEDERATION, and not claiming to be Catawba in the sense that the present day South Carolina tribe is Catawba. #212 It is found as fact that the Catawba Tribe was joined at the Catawba River Settlement by many other tribes including the Saponi and remnants of tribes whose identity eventually became closely associated with the name, CATAWBAN.

Tutelo-Saponi Language Lesson #8

Lawrence A. Dunmore, III

Page 7 NOV-DEC 2016

Pluralized Adjectives

In the Tutelo-Saponi language, the pluralization of adjectives of objects (non-living) are expressed by reduplication.

As an adjective is reduplicated, a verbal suffix is added.

For example:

Plural Conjugations: white house - ati asáñ white houses - ati asañsáñsel ugly house - ati okayēke ugly houses - ati okayeyēksel large house - ati itáñi large houses - ati itañtañsel There are two unusual plural conjugations: small house - ati gutska small houses - ati Kotskutskaisel long house - ati sui long houses - ati yumpañkatskaisel

Now you try …. Tall mountains Old Trees Big strawberries Red hats Big guns Brown leaves Sick children Lupūs - hats; gide - big; wakasic - children; atsūti- red Haspahínuk - strawberry; Yatt - tall; çūqe - mountain; Onī -Tree; waginōma -sick; mīnktē - gun; otōi - leaf; atcotate - brown

For living beings (humans and animals) the verbal termination is used without reduplication.

For example: Wahtáke bi (Wah-tah-kay bee) Good man becomes: Wahtáke biwa or bise (Wah-tah-kay bee) Good men Mihe bi (Me-hay bee) Good woman. becomes: Mihe bise (Me-hay bee-say) Good women.

Tçhuñge bise Good dog or It is a good dog

Becomes: Tçhuñge bihlése Good dogs or They are good dogs. Now you try …Bad dogs, Red cats, Tall men or Sleeping women Dalusgik - cat; Yatt - tall; hīyañ - sleep; atsūti - red

Answers to these pluralized adjectives will be in the next language lesson

Page 8 NOV-DEC 2016

Tutelo-Saponi Language Lesson #8 cont. SEPARATE PRONOUNS

Now let's see the correct use of the following verbs with separate pronouns from last month’s lesson.

Separate Pronouns are only used to express emphasis on something. They are kept separate from the verb or adjective when they are used. In conversation, they are used to put special emphasis on something.

Mím(a) - I, (Mee-mah) Im(a)-He, She, They (Ee-mah) or Imahese - (Ee-mah- hay-say) Mim(a) - We (Mee-mah) Im(a)-Him, Her, Them (Ee-mah) or Imahese (Ee-mah- hay-say) Yím(a) - You (Yee-mah) (a) is used to put emphasis

Affixed Nominative Pronouns I - Ma, Wa, Mi, Me, We You - Ya, Ye, Yi, Yin We - Mae, Ma, Mai, Man, Manj They/Them -hla, hlese, hna*, hne* *Verbs ending in a are conjugated with hna *Verbs ending in e are conjugated with hne Begûn (Bay-goon) - to blow He/She blow (it). Ima Begûn (Ee-mah Bay-goon) He/She must blow. Bewagûn (Bay-wah-goon I blow (it). Mím(a) Bewagûn (Mee-mah Bay-wah-goon) I must blow (it). Beyagûn (Bay-yah-goon) You blow (it). Yíma Beyagûn (Yee-mah Bay-yah-goon) You must blow (it). begûnhne (Bay-goon-hen-ay) They blow (it). Imahese begûnhne. (Ee-mah-hay-say Bay-goon-hen-ay) They must blow it.

Maebegûn (May-Bay-goon) We blow (it). Míma Maebegûn (Mee-mah May-Bay-goon) We must blow it Opé - (Oh-pay) He/She are going Ima opé (Ee-mah oh-pay) He/She must be going Owapé (Oh-wah-pay) I am going. Mím(a) owapé (Mee-mah Oh-wah-pay) I must be going Oyapé (Oh-yah-pay) You are going. Yíma oyapé (Yee-mah oh-yah-pay) You must be going. Opéhne (Oh-pay-ha-nay) They are going. Imahese opéhne (Ee-mah-hay-say Oh-pay-ha-nay) They must be going Maopé - (Mah-oh-pay) We are going Míma maopé - (Mee-mah Mah-oh-pay) We must be going. Alé (Ah-lay) to go He/She go. Ima alé (Ee-mah Ah-lay) He/She must go. Walé (Wah-lay) I go. Mím(a) walé (Mee-mah Wah-lay) I must go.

Yalé (Yah-lay) You go. Yíma yalé (Yee-mah Yah-lay) You must go. Aléhne (Ah-lay-ha-nay) They go. Imahese aléhne. (Ee-mah-hay-say ah-lay-ha-nay) They must go. Malé (mah-lay) We go. Míma malé. (Mee-mah mah-lay) We must go. Lóca (Low-kah) to take He/She take. Ima Loca (Ee-mah Low-kah) He/She must take. Walóca (Wah-low-kah) I take. Mím(a) walóca (Mee-mah Wah-low-kah) I must take (it). Yalóca (Yah-low-kah)ä You take. Yíma yalóca (Yee-mah Yah-low-kah) You must take (it). Lócahla (Low-kah-ha-law) They take. Imahese lócahla (Low-kah-law) They must take (it). Mailóca (My-low-kah) We take. Míma mailóca. (Mee-mah my-low-kah) We must go.

Tutelo-Saponi Language Lessons on MS OneNote:

Enrolled Tribal members are can now access the Tutelo-Saponi Language Lessons from the Tribal newsletter on Microsoft OneNote. Members can view each lesson and listen to sound files of the Tutelo-Saponi words. All you need to do is submit your name/ enrollment number and email address to the tribal office. We will then add you to the access list. Come learn your language!

Page 9 NOV-DEC 2016

Tutelo-Saponi Language Lesson #8 cont.

NOV-DEC 2016 Page 10

By Mark Schultz (The News Observer)

mschultz@newsobserver.com

The weathered, cedar poles are all that remain of the replica Indian village along the banks of the Eno River behind the Orange County Courthouse in Hillsborough. The few huts encircled by a palisade wall was a reminder of the Occaneechi people who lived nearby, after being driven from Virginia’s Roanoke River by Bacon’s Rebellion in the 1600s. For about seven years, the village told the story of a people who once controlled the deerskin trade along the Great Trading Path from modern Virginia to Georgia. In 2004, after falling into disrepair, the village was packed up, its parts moved to Alamance County, where the Occaneechi were starting a tribal center on 25 acres. The replica was gone, but for a few, now-gray, cedar poles left behind. But people remembered. “Everybody missed the site,” said Sarah DeGennaro, the executive director at The Alliance for Historic Hillsborough. “It was a major tourist attraction. They call, still, and ask, ‘Is the village there?’” This spring it will be. On a cold Saturday afternoon, John “Blackfeather” Jeffries blew smoke in the four compass directions as about 125 people gathered to rededicate the site where the Occaneechi, town and county plan to rebuild. In September 1997, Jeffries, then a second-shift dispatcher for Piedmont Electric, began cutting the cedar poles for the first village wall, burning the tops into points as his ancestors without metal tool would have done three centuries earlier. There were 396 poles in the palisade, and it would take him three months. “I cut 360 of them, with two bad knees and two bad hips,” Jeffries said, adding “all of them have been replaced now.” The village was a labor of love for her cousin, said Vickie Jeffries, the tribal administrator. “This is his dream,” she said Saturday. “He would actually come and sit and do arrows and people would come by and sit with him,” she said. “It means a lot to him, and believe me he will be out here every single day.” In 2002 the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation became North Carolina’s eighth official Indian tribe. But Jeffries said the people who once fished, hunted and farmed along the river bank have been largely forgotten. “It wasn’t for me,” he said of the first village. “It was for our people to come.” People like his father. “My dad, he was 98, (when) he came down to the village,” Jeffries said. “He sat in his wheelchair and said, ‘I didn’t know how my people lived, but since you’ve built this you’ve taught me.’” This time, Jeffries will have help to sustain the village. First, the site is now part of the town’s River Park, with a nearby farmers market and public trails inviting visitors to keep a watchful eye. Second, the project is a collaboration among the Occaneechi, Alliance for Historic Hillsborough, the town of Hillsborough and Orange County, which is providing $20,000 to purchase the new cedar poles and hire someone to work with Jeffries, who thinks the project can happen by March or April. The town and county and will follow through with interpretive signs and Living History Days and re-enactors like those that already share the town’s Revolutionary-era past. Rich Shaw, the county’s land conservation manager, is excited. As he stood on the site Saturday, he looked up at the bridge that carries visitors across the Eno into the historic part of town. “People just crossing over the bridge will see it,” he said. “You’ll look over and say, ‘What is that?’ That’s what I remember (about the old village). It was so unusual.” Saturday’s ceremony closed with Jason “Crazy Bear” Keck, 44, and his son Geronimo, 12, singing the “Four Directions Song” in one of the Siouan dialects the Occaneechi and related tribes spoke. People bundled against the December chill, then tossed dried tobacco into the fire. Jeffries noted the crowd, some of whom signed up to volunteer. “I didn’t have this much interest when I started putting in the poles,” the first time, he said. He looks forward to sharing his story with visitors again. “You build it, they’ll come,” he said. “It’s been proven.” Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/community/chapel-hill-news/article121632327.html#storylink=cpy

Occaneechi village to rise again along Eno River in Hillsborough

John “Blackfeather” Jeffries, 77, blows smoke during a rededication ceremony Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. The Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation, The Alliance for Historic Hillsborough, and the governments of Hillsborough and Orange County plan to rebuild a replica village of an Occaneechi village that once existed along the Eno River in the late 1600s and early 1700s. Mark Schultz mschultz@newsobserver.com

Tribal members and guests participating in the dedication ceremony.

Occaneechi Village Dedication Pictures

Page 11 NOV-DEC 2016

Stuffed Squash

Brown 1 package sausage crumbled with ½ cup chopped onion. Prepare 1 box cornbread stuffing according to package directions, except reduce water by ¼ cup, and substitute ½ can cream of mushroom soup. Mix all ingredients together. Prepare 3-4 acorn squash by cutting in half horizontally and scooping out seeds and strings to make cups.

Stuff with filling and place in greased baking dish. Cover with foil and bake at 350 until squash is tender. Remove foil add grated cheddar cheese to top of squash and bake 5 minutes more.

Enjoy!

NOV-DEC 2016 Page 12

Three Sisters Soup

INGREDIENTS: 2 cups hominy, drained (canned white or yellow) 2 cups fresh green beans, trimmed and snapped 2 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed 1 1 ⁄2 cups potatoes, peeled and diced 5 cups water 1 1 ⁄2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules 2 tablespoons butter, melted 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 1 ⁄4 teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS

Place the hominy, green beans, squash, and potatoes into a pot. Pour in water and chicken bouillon. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, and simmer until vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Blend flour into the butter, then stir into the soup. Increase heat to medium, and cook for 5 more minutes, or until soup thickens. Season with pepper, and serve.

Woman Who Stands Tall

NOV-DEC 2016 Page 13