Memorial service to mark 400th anniversary of Massachusett tribe massacre

WEYMOUTH − A memorial service will mark the 400th anniversary of the massacre at Wessagusset in 1623, when English Colonists ambushed members of the Massachusett tribe.

The memorial is scheduled for 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday, May 6, at the Wessagussett Wetland and Woodland conservation site at 215 Sea St. Descendants of the Massachusett known as the Massachusett Tribe at Ponkapoag will play drums and share the history of their ancestors.

Wessagusset in North Weymouth is the second-oldest settlement in Massachusetts, founded two years after the Pilgrims landed in Plymouth.

The town bought the 4-acre Wessagussett Wetland and Woodland site on May 6, 1999, to prevent development. A group of residents led by Jodi Purdy-Quinlan had advocated for the purchase.

Purdy-Quinlan received a grant from Weymouth Cultural Council, funded by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, to hold the memorial.

"It has been 24 years since I preserved this land in honor of the Neponset Band of the Massachusett. I felt it was important to bring their descendants to honor their ancestors," she said.

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The Massachusett tribe lived in the area seasonally to hunt, plant and fish. An outbreak of smallpox brought by European settlers killed about 90% of native people from Maine to Rhode Island between 1616 and 1619.

In 1622, London entrepreneur Thomas Weston planned a colony on the Fore River, which the Native Americans called Wessagusset, or "place where the rocks meet the water." Weston hoped to make money on beaver skins, fish and timber.

But the Englishmen were ill prepared and resorted to stealing from the Massachusett Indians, who in response plotted against the men. On April 6, 1623, Myles Standish led a surprise attack that killed seven Native Americans, which triggered more violence. The Weston colony ultimately broke up and some of the colonists moved back to England.

A second group of families arrived months later to resettle the area. The colony was incorporated as a town and its name was officially changed to Weymouth in 1635.

Interpretive panels describing the area's history were added to the Wessagussett Wetland and Woodland site in 2021.

Reach Jessica Trufant at jtrufant@patriotledger.com

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This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Massachusett tribe massacre memorialized in Weymouth after 400 years