PEESEI^T HOME. 



The Paiimiikey Indians of to day live at wliat is known as "Indian- 

 town," which is situated on and comprises the whole of a curiously- 

 shaped neck of land, extendiuo- into raniunkey river and adjoining 

 King- William county, Virginia, on the south. The " town," as it is 

 somewhat imj^roperly called, forms a very small part of their original 

 territory. It is almost entirely surrounded by water, being connected 

 with the mainland by a narrow strip i^f land. The peculiar protection 

 which is afforded in time of war by its natural position in all proba- 

 bility accounts for the i>resence of these Indians in this particular 

 spot; 'and, indeed, I doubt not that to this advantageous situation is 

 due their very existence. 



Indiantown is about 21 miles east of Richmond immediately on the 

 line of the York river division of the Eichmond and Danville railroad. 

 It consists of about 800 acres, 250 of which are arable land, the remain- 

 ing portion being woodland and low, marshy ground. This tract was 

 secured to the Pamunkey Indians by act of the colonial assembly, and 

 they are restrained from alienating the same. 



From a census taken by the wi-iter in 1893 there were found to be 

 90 Indians then actually present on the reservation. There are, how- 

 ever, about 20 others who sj^end a part of the year in service in the 

 city or on some of the steamers which ply the Virginia waters. There 

 are, therefore, about 110 Pamunkey Indians now living. 



The population of the '^town" has varied little in the last century. 

 Jefferson, writing in 1781, estimated their number to be 100, and Howe, 

 nearly seventy years later, placed it at the same figure. 



INDTVIDTTAL CHARACTERISTICS. 



No member of the Pamunkey tribe is of full Indian blood. While 

 the copper- colored skin and the straight, coarse hair of the aboriginal 

 American show decidedly in some individuals, there are others wdiose 

 Indian origin would not be detected by the ordinary observer. There 

 has been considerable intermixture of white blood in the tribe, and not 

 a little of that of the negro, though the laws of the tribe now strictly' 

 prohibit marriage to persons of African descent. 



No one who visits the Pamunkey could fail to notice their race pride. 

 Though they would probably acknowledge the whites as their equals, 

 they consider the blacks far beneath their social level. Their feeling 

 toward the negro is well illustrated by their recent indignant refusal 

 to accept a colored teacher, who was sent them by the superintendent 

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