Nansemond Indian Nation celebrates 36th Annual Pow Wow

Published 9:00 am Wednesday, August 21, 2024

By James W. Robinson

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Saturday was a joyous occasion as Suffolk residents joined the Nansemond Indian Nation for their Pow Wow celebration.

The 36th Annual Nansemond Indian Nation Pow Wow was held on Saturday, Aug. 17 and Sunday, Aug. 18, at Mattanock Town and saw a showcase of unity. The inclusive event saw attendees take part to learn and honor Native American culture while stopping by various vendors, food trucks and participating in vibrant social dances. 

Attendance for this year’s event is estimated at 6,500 to 7,000. During the Pow Wow, Nansemond Indian Nation Chief Emeritus Sam Bass talked about seeing all the attendees come out.

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“It is a wonderful sight to behold of all my years and the great support that we have from the communities and the areas, I mean, we have people from other states attending…” Bass said.

Old Dominion University Professor Emerita of Antrhopology Helen C. Rountree also attended the event and shared some history about the Pow Wow.

“The Chickahominy Fall Festival originated back in 1951 – a really long time back – and other tribes as they got better organized, and also a bit more prosperous, began to put on Pow Wows as well,” Rountree said. “But particularly, it began to pick up in the ‘80s and ‘90s.”

Rountree detailed that the first Nansemond Indian Nation Pow Wow dated back to 1988. Taking place on ancestral land, this was originally called the “Nansemond Indian Homecoming,” celebrating the Nation’s return to the Nansemond River after centuries of colonial displacement.

“It started in the morning with a visit by the tribespeople to an island in Nansemond River, which used to be the site of the tribe’s temple, back in the early 1600s. And then, there was a fairly standard sort of Pow Wow in the afternoon here at what we now call Mattanock Town. It was in Lone Star Lakes city park,” Rountree said. “They continued having Pow Wows out here. They’ve not been back to the island, but they continued having Pow Wows and they began to grow gradually.”

Rountree notes this year’s Pow Wow was “one of the biggest they’ve had.” It was also monumental as it celebrated the Nation receiving the land transfer of Mattanock Town back from the City of Suffolk, which took place in May when Suffolk City Council approved the Memorandum of Understanding. Mayor Michael D. Duman and Council Members Shelley Butler-Barlow, Roger Fawcett and John Rector also attended to celebrate the historical moment. Rountree talked further about the transfer.

“They have a deed instead of a lease, which is good,” Rountree said. “And they’re slapping a conservation easement on it, which is something that the other Virginia federal tribes are doing, where they have a chance to buy up undeveloped waterfront land that would otherwise be stuck under houses and driveways and concrete. They’re buying them and they’re putting them under federal conservation, and they cannot be developed. They cannot be built upon, except with certain things educational or recreational that’s open to the public and things of that sort – not that they’re sitting on the land, they are getting ready to share it – and that’s precisely what the Nansemonds are doing with Mattanock.”

Likewise, Bass expressed how thankful the Nation is for the continued support.

“The Nansemond Indian Nation appreciates them coming out and enjoying themselves, wanting to learn about our culture and what we do, and our food, our way of life,” Bass said. “We’re not angry about the past, we’re excited about the future, and we want to thank all the citizens for their support.”

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