Virginia Indians Today

Pamunkey Reservation

The Pamunkey Indians were the most powerful of the tribes in the great Powhatan paramount chiefdom, which consisted of approximately 35 tribes with an estimated population of 10,000 people under the leadership of Chief Powhatan. His territory encompassed the entire coastal plain from south of the James River to near Washington, DC. The tribe is exceedingly proud of their lineage and enjoys telling how bravely their ancestors resisted the encroachment of the white settlers. The Pamunkey enjoy the distinction of being one of the tribes east of the Mississippi that has practiced the art of pottery making continuously since aboriginal times.

The tribe, of approximately 100 persons, is located on the Pamunkey Indian Reservation in King William County, near West Point, Virginia. The Pamunkey Tribe has been recognized by the Commonwealth of Virginia as an Indian Tribe since colonial times. The reservation was confirmed to the Tribe as early as 1658 by the Governor, the Council, and the General Assembly of Virginia. The treaty of 1677 between the King of England, acting through the Governor of Virginia, and several Indian Tribes including the Pamunkey is the most important existing document describing Virginia's relationship towards Indian land. The Pamunkey Indian Reservation, on the Pamunkey river and adjacent to King William County Virginia, contains approximately 1,200 acres of land, 500 acres of which is wetlands with numerous creeks. Thirty-four families reside on the reservation and many Tribal members live in nearby Richmond, Newport News, other parts of the State, and all over the United States.

To learn more about the Pamunkey Indian Reservation, visit
http://www.baylink.org/Pamunkey/.