Powhatan Confederacy

Hello! We are the people of the Powhatan Confederacy. We want to share our story with you. Our home was a beautiful land called Tsenacommacah, which is now the state of Virginia. Our land had many forests and sparkling rivers. The rivers were like roads for us. We built special boats called dugout canoes to travel on the water. To make a canoe, we would find a big, strong tree and carefully shape it. Our families lived together in warm houses called yehakins. We built our villages near the water so we could fish and travel easily. Our home was full of life.

Every day, we worked together to make sure everyone had what they needed. We were wonderful farmers. In our gardens, we planted corn, beans, and squash. We called these plants the "Three Sisters" because they grew so well next to each other. The tall cornstalks helped the bean vines climb, and the big squash leaves kept the ground shady and moist. Besides farming, we also went hunting in the big forests. We hunted deer for food and skins. The rivers were also full of fish, so we spent time fishing, too. Sharing food was important in our communities.

Our people lived in many different tribes, and each tribe was like a big family. A wise and powerful leader named Wahunsenacawh, also known as Chief Powhatan, had a great idea. He helped many of our tribes join together. This big group of tribes was our Powhatan Confederacy. By joining together, we could help each other and keep our communities safe. We were stronger as a group. We are proud of our history. The Powhatan people and our tribes are still here today, carrying on the stories of our ancestors.