Our Native American collection includes over 1000 ethnographic objects divided between New England, the Plains, Southwest, and Northwest Coast culture areas. Since its inception, Fruitlands collaborates with Native Americans, scholars and conservators to interpret and care for its Native American collection.
The Story...
For centuries, Native Americans inhabited the Nashaway Valley, hunting in its woods and fishing in the river. Across the valley on Mt. Wachusett, Algonquin Chief King Philip summoned other Algonquin chiefs in 1676 to form a confederation against the encroaching English. Earlier, Clara Endicott Sears’ ancestor, Massachusetts Bay Governor Endicott, had tried with little success to make compensation to the natives.
The Native American Gallery contains two exhibits:
One Thousand Generations
This exhibit tells the history of Native Americans in southern New England. Developed with generous support of the Wampanoag and Nipmuck communities of Massachusetts.
Read a short article about King Philips Club.
Objects and Meaning: Multiple Perspectives on Native American Art and Culture
Do objects hold meaning, or does the meaning only lie in the interpretation of the observer?
This exhibit was designed as a collaborative interpretive effort to present Native American culture for several points of view: the Native perspective, the art dealer and the anthropologist. Filled with ethnographic materials from all across North America, the exhibit is organized into three regional cultural areas: Plains, Southwest, and Northwest Coast.
Visit and Discover...
War Shirt
- Visit our new Native American longhouse settlement area built alongside the Native American Gallery. This educational space is used to teach children and famiiles about the way Natives historically lived in harmony with nature and the changing seasons.
- Test your skills as a hunter by learning to throw at traditional atl'atl.
- Learn about the rich spiritual culture of Native people, and how their lives were fundamentally interwoven with nature, especially birds and animals.
- See exquisite regalia and learn about the symbolic, ritualistic and artistic importance of these Native American garments.
More Resources...
Kowawwaund
As an experiment, we invited visitors to help us make a dugout canoe - using stone tools and fire! This hands-on exhibit takes you step by step through the process. Watch the video segment below to learn all about this Fruitlands Museum experimental archaeology project.
Read an article on the how we created the Dugout Canoe.
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