Maine Memory Network

Wabanaki women have worn these conical wool hats with ribbon applique and beadwork as part of their daily dress for centuries. In 2021, the hats are mainly worn during special occasions.

Wabanaki people have always designed and decorated their clothing in beautiful and innovative ways. Materials such as red and blue wool gained during treaty negotiations and distributed annually (called annuity cloth) and glass beads and ribbons purchased at trading posts saved time from processing skins, stones, and shells. The introduction of brightly colored silk ribbons and standard-sized glass beads from Europe led to a flourishing of innovation in Wabanaki adornment and fashion.

Paula Love Thorne, member of the Penobscot Nation, made this ash and sweetgrass acorn basket. Thorne hails from a long line of basketmakers. Her mentor was renowned Penobscot weaver, Christine Nicholas.

Baskets made in the form of vegetables and fruits are common in Wabanaki culture. Wabanaki people, usually women, grew varieties of corn, beans, and squash in what are called Three Sisters planting mounds. Wabanaki diets also relied on foods like acorns and butternuts—trees that were decimated by European harvesting for timber and masts.

Paula Love Thorne, a member of the Penobscot Nation, made this corn basket made of ash and sweetgrass. Thorne hails from a long line of basketmakers. Her mentor was renowned Penobscot weaver, Christine Nicholas.

Baskets made in the forms of vegetables and fruits are common in Wabanaki culture. Wabanaki people, usually women, grew varieties of corn, beans, and squash in what are called Three Sisters planting mounds. Wabanaki diets also relied on foods like acorns and butternuts—trees that were decimated by European harvesting for timber and masts. The corn form could reflect tribal histories relating to the First Mother, who sacrificed her life to provide corn and food for the people.

John Sawyer wrote about his meetings with chiefs from the Penobscot Tribe and General Blake, regarding training in colonial settler agricultural methods and living more like the Euro-Americans.

Sawyer and Blake did not understand that Wabanaki people were experts at cultivating plants in their Homeland for millennia. Traditional foodways were disrupted as colonization efforts, like this one, radically changed Wabanaki diets and lifestyles, adversely affecting health.

Two Penobscot women and three girls harvest potatoes on Indian Island near Old Town.