Mystic, CT. April 14, 2025 – Mystic Seaport Museum is pleased to present Monstrous: Whaling and Its Colossal Impact, an exhibition that explores the history, significance, and social impact of the whaling industry. Opening on May 24, 2025, and on view until February 16, 2026, the exhibition will feature seldom seen historic artifacts from the Museum’s vaults including specimens, tools, documents, photographs, and ephemera all in dialogue with contemporary artist Jos Sances’s Or, The Whale, a massive 51-foot scratchboard mural of a sperm whale chronicling the evolution of American industrialization.
Between the 1820s and 1920s, the demand for whale oil—prized for its non-drying and non-corroding properties in candles, lamps, and the burgeoning machinery of the Industrial Revolution— was immense. Estimated to have killed over half a million animals in the 19th century, these floating oil factories required crews of men who endured arduous voyages. Each was a one-million-dollar investment in today’s dollars, highlighting the crucial, yet ultimately unsustainable, role of whale oil as the petroleum of its time.
The perilous reality of the whaling trade is starkly illustrated by the tools of the hunt. From the menacing, oversized harpoons and darting guns to the wickedly sharp cutting-in tools and blubber hooks exceeding three feet in length, these implements represent the life-threatening efforts undertaken to secure precious whale byproducts. The exhibition also highlights moments of innovation, such as the circa 1845 iron harpoons with swiveling heads designed by the African American blacksmith Lewis Temple, an ingenious adaptation created to ensure a secure hold on their massive prey, as violently depicted in the 1835 image Capturing a Sperm Whale. Once caught, the whale’s blubber would be boiled down on the deck of the ship in gigantic trypots like those on view in the exhibition, each of which held around 200 gallons of oil.
Aside from the immensely valuable oil and blubber, whaling crews created artistic and cultural consumer goods to offset the grueling boredom while at sea. Monstrous will show a wide range of scrimshaw engravings on whale bones or teeth, baleen dress stays, knitting needles, and a small flask of ambergris, the waxy substance from whale intestines prized for its use in perfumes.
Monstrous connects historical artifacts with a contemporary perspective by showcasing Jos Sances’s monumental scratchboard Or, The Whale, a nearly life-sized mural of a sperm whale. This piece memorializes the many social and political challenges Americans faced during the country’s industrialization, drawing parallels between the exploitative practices of the whaling era and the ongoing societal issues examined in the exhibition.
The human stories of life on a commercial whale ship or whaler are told by the Mystic Seaport Museum documentation and ephemera. While primarily male, whaling crews occasionally included women, who joined the voyages as wives and mothers, but sometimes played the roles of navigators, correspondents, nurses, managers, and log keepers. The last woman to sail on the Charles W. Morgan during its whaling career, Charlotte (Lottie) Church, kept a ship’s log as her role as assistant navigator. Historic photographs on-view in Monstrous also reveal the multicultural makeup of whaling crews. As whaling expeditions lasted years and traveled globally, they would amass crew members in foreign ports. Whaling was also a job for both free and formerly enslaved Black men: Monstrous includes the Museum’s stately portrait of Antoine DeSant, an accomplished Cape Verdean whaler who settled in New London in 1860.
By bringing together historical remnants of the whaling era with the contemporary artistic interpretation, Monstrous creates a vital dialogue across time. This exhibition encourages reflection on the complex relationship between human ambition, resource exploitation, and societal change, offering valuable insights for contemporary audiences at a time when we once again examine our sources of energy.
Mystic, Conn. (February 19, 2025) – Mystic Seaport Museum proudly announces its second-place position in the Best Open-Air Museum category of the 2025 USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice awards out of twenty exceptional open-air museums featured in the competition. The top ten winners were officially announced on Wednesday, February 19.
“This acknowledgment of Mystic Seaport Museum by an expert panel and the public for the second year in a row reinforces our position as a top destination for cultural enrichment and maritime exploration,” says Museum President and CEO, Peter Armstrong.
These nominations were carefully curated by a panel of subject matter experts and USA TODAY 10Best editors before being voted on by the public. Votes were cast in each category over a four-week period starting in January on the 10Best.com website. A sincere thank you to USA TODAY, 10Best, and all the contributors for including the Museum in this year’s nomination.
Mystic Seaport Museum extends its heartfelt gratitude to all those who voted in support of the Museum as we continue our commitment to inspire our visitors and supporters to find their personal connections to the sea through immersive experiences, exhibitions, and opportunities. Congratulations to all the open-air museums, including 1st place winner, our friends and colleagues at Plimoth Patuxet Museums.
Wintertide Returns Presidents’ Day Weekend at Mystic Seaport Museum: Three Days of Frosty Festivities the Entire Family Can Enjoy
Mystic, Conn. (January 15, 2025) – Mystic Seaport Museum is turning the tide on winter doldrums and adding a festive spirit to the season with the return of Wintertide February 15–17. The whole family will enjoy the winter whimsy and frosty festivities during this three-day celebration of the great outdoors in picturesque New England.
Wintertide at the Museum offers countless ways for visitors of all ages to create lasting memories:
Meet Animals: Get up close with winter working dogs (Saturday and Sunday), horses (Monday), and reindeer (all three days).
Ice Sculpture Demonstrations: Watch Art in Ice create lawn games from ice and then play them!
Activities the Entire Family Will Enjoy: Partake in games and crafts; kids can enjoy a snowman bounce house, kid-friendly live improv theater, and a model train show.
Educational Talks: Learn about the history of the toggle iron harpoon, Indigenous whalers, Arctic whalers, and tales of the Mystic ice trade.
Black History Month Art Activity: Create a small clay canoe and paint meaningful symbols on it. Visit the dugout canoe on display in Entwined: Freedom, Sovereignty, and the Sea for inspiration.
Planetarium Shows: Experience a show in the Treworgy Planetarium.
Cozy Up: Warm up with hot cocoa or relax by a crackling fire.
Sensory-Friendly Hour: On Monday from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. people on the Autism spectrum or with sensory-processing challenges and their families/caregivers are invited to enjoy the quiet Museum, see horses, play lawn games, make crafts, and listen to a story. Pre-registration is required.
Propeller Café and Schaefer’s Spouter Tavern will be serving up a variety of food and beverage options to complement the frosty theme, including hot cocoa and s’mores kits.
Most activities are included with general admission and this event is free for Museum Members. Tickets purchased online for Wintertide are valid for all three days of the event.
Learn more, see the full event lineup, and purchase ticketshere.
Event Details
Dates: Presidents’ Day Weekend, February 15–17
Time: 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
Tickets:
$25 Adult; $18 Youth (ages 4–12); children 3 and under FREE
Tickets are good for all 3 days of the event.
Members: Free (membership details available on our website)
This experience takes place at the north end of the Museum while the south end is closed for the season; please enter through the Thompson Exhibition Building.
Mystic, Conn. (January 7, 2025) – Mystic Seaport Museum continues its Adventure Series, a captivating lecture series that has been inspiring audiences since 1946. The 2025 Adventure Series: Olympic Horizons features four engaging sessions that explore the connection between Olympic achievement and the broader world of adventure. Olympic athletesDan Walsh and Maggie Shea will share their personal stories of perseverance and triumph, while Pieter Roos, Curator at Mystic Seaport Museum, will present fascinating tales from the Museum’s diverse collection, which span maritime history, exploration, and innovation. Each session promises to unlock new horizons, offering expert insights and inspiring stories that will captivate history and adventure enthusiasts alike.
To learn more and purchase tickets, visit the Museum websitehere.
Lecture Details
Dates and times:
January 16, 1:30 and 7:00 p.m., Pushing the Limits: Dan Walsh’s Olympic Journey from Norwalk to Beijing
February 20, 1:30 p.m., Sailing Through Stories: Pieter Roos Brings Mystic Seaport Museum Collections to Life
March 20, 7:00 p.m., Sailing Through Stories: Pieter Roos Brings Mystic Seaport Museum Collections to Life
April 17, 1:30 and 7:00 p.m., Chasing Gold: Maggie Shea’s Olympic Path to the Tokyo and Paris Olympics
Tickets:
Members $20 | Non-members $25
Location:
StoneRidge, 186 Jerry Browne Rd, Mystic, Connecticut, 06355
Photo, Left to right: Debra Schmidt Bach, PhD; Leah Prescott, MLS; Michael P. Dyer, MA; Akeia de Barros Gomes, PhD; Elysa Engelman, PhD
MYSTIC SEAPORT MUSEUM ANNOUNCES THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR MARITIME STUDIES LED BY AKEIA DE BARROS GOMES, PhD, THE WILLIAM E. COOK VICE PRESIDENT FOR MARITIME STUDIES;INITIATIVE UNITES MUSEUM’S RENOWNED HIGHER EDUCATION PROGRAMS
Museum Appoints Leah Prescott, MLS, as Senior Administrator of Library Resources, Debra Schmidt Bach, PhD, as Director of Exhibitions, Elysa Engelman, PhD, as Director of Research and Scholarship, and Michael P. Dyer, MA, as Curator of Maritime History
Mystic, CT. [September25, 2024] – Mystic Seaport Museum announces the launch of the American Institute for Maritime Studies (AIMS), an initiative that consolidates the Museum’s scholarship in maritime studies and elevates its role as the nation’s leading maritime research facility and academic institute. AIMS will strengthen the Museum’s graduate and undergraduate programs, including fellowships and internships through the newly created Department of Research and Scholarship. In addition to being the nation’s premier location for maritime scholarships, there will be a particular emphasis on making collections (both objects and manuscripts) more publicly accessible for researchers and the general public. AIMS will engage with institutions of higher education, including the Ruth J. Simmons Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice at Brown University, Williams College, and the University of Connecticut.
The Museum has appointed Dr. Akeia de Barros Gomes as the William E. Cook Vice President for Maritime Studies at AIMS. De Barros Gomes joined the Museum in 2021 as Senior Curator of Maritime Studies.The Museum has also named Leah Prescott, MLS, as Senior Administrator of Library Resources at AIMS, Dr.Debra Schmidt Bach as Director of Exhibitions at the Museum, Dr. Elysa Engelman as Director of Research and Scholarship, and Michael P. Dyer, MA, Curator of Maritime History and Instructor, Frank C. Munson Institute of Maritime History.
“I am thrilled to lead the American Institute for Maritime Studies as we embark on this important new chapter for the Museum,” says Dr. de Barros Gomes of her new role. “AIMS represents a significant step forward in the Museum’s mission to enhance the scholarship around maritime histories and to tell stories that have been passed from generation to generation.”
AIMS will build upon ongoing research opportunities at the Museum, including fellowships, internships, and visiting scholars, by creating additional opportunities for community engagement and academic initiatives, including publications. Earlier this year Mainsheet: A Journal of Multidisciplinary Maritime Studiesdebuted. This biannual publication, available both online and in print, sets itself apart with its multidisciplinary approach, global themes and accessibility, and innovative design and distribution. Mainsheet offers a unique platform for scholars worldwide to explore maritime issues spanning the past, present, and future. AIMS scholars and staff will broaden their research through robust connections with national and international universities and museums, and will explore topics related to maritime cultural connections, maritime art, and social and economic issues through a contemporary lens.
As the William E. Cook Vice President for Maritime Studies, Dr. de Barros Gomes will be responsible for bringing strategic vision and thought leadership to the Institute. She will oversee professionals dedicated to advancing the Museum’s academic presence in maritime studies and share those findings and stories with local and broader Museum visitors through exhibitions and programming. AIMS will also continue Dr. de Barros Gomes’s outreach to local communities to engage with oral histories. Previously as the Museum’s Senior Curator of Maritime Studies, Dr. de Barros Gomes was lead curator of the exhibition Entwined: Freedom, Sovereignty, and the Sea, on view at the Museum through April 2026. She is also the co-Director of the Museum’s Frank C. Munson Institute of American Maritime Studies along with Michael P. Dyer. Before joining Mystic Seaport Museum, she was Curator of Social History at the New Bedford Whaling Museum. She received a PhD and MA in Anthropology with a focus in Archeology from the University of Connecticut in 2008.
Leah Prescott, MLS, has been appointed the new Senior Administrator of Library Resources. Prescott was previously the Associate Director for Collections and Co-Interim Director at the Harvard Law School Library and served as Associate Director for Digital Initiatives and Special Collections at Georgetown Law Center. Previously at Mystic Seaport Museum, she held several positions over two decades, including Manuscripts and Archives Librarian, Collections Information Technology Coordinator, Information Technologies Librarian, Manuscripts Assistant, and Museum Interpreter. Prescott holds a Master of Library Science and Information Studies from Syracuse University and a BA in American History from the University of Connecticut. She has been a Certified Archivist since 2005 and actively participates in the National Digital Stewardship Alliance, where she co-chaired the Infrastructure Interest Group from 2020 to 2022.
Debra Schmidt Bach, PhD, has been appointed as the new Director of Exhibitions. Bach was previously the Curator of Decorative Arts and Special Exhibitions at the New-York Historical Society, where she curated and collaborated on numerous popular culture and social history exhibitions, including The Art of Winold Reiss: An ImmigrantModernist; Beyond Midnight: Paul Revere; and First Jewish Americans: Freedom and Culture in the New World. Bach lectures widely, has written numerous essays, articles, and blogs, and has contributed to exhibition catalogs and popular culture anthologies, including “Of Great Renown: The History of Rheingold Beer,” in The New York Mets in Popular Culture (McFarland & Co., 2020). Bach received an MA in American Studies from Columbia University and a PhD with a focus on material culture and design history from the Bard Graduate Center in 2015.
Michael P. Dyer, MA, has been appointed the new Curator of Maritime History. Dyer was most recently Curator of Maritime History at the New Bedford Whaling Museum, where he curated several exhibits including most recently the exhibition All Hands: Yankee Whaling and the U.S. Navy (2023–24). He was an editor of Vistas: A Journal of Art, History, Science, and Culture, published by the New Bedford Whaling Museum, and is author of several monographs including “O’er the Wide and Tractless Sea”: Original Art of the Yankee Whale Hunt (New Bedford, 2017), and was previously an instructor in Maritime History at the Northeast Maritime Institute at Fairhaven, Massachusetts. Dyer was also a USA Gallery Inaugural Fellow at the Australian National Maritime Museum in 2008, and a 38th Voyager onboard the bark Charles W. Morgan of Mystic, Connecticut, in the summer of 2014.
Elysa Engelman, PhD, has been appointed the AIMS Director of Research and Scholarship. This new position entails working with the curatorial team to produce scholarly output; organizing academic lectures, symposia, and conferences; developing scholarly publications; and managing AIMS-centered internships and fellowships. Engelman was previously Exhibits Researcher/Developer at Mystic Seaport Museum and then Director of Exhibits. She has a doctorate from Boston University in American and New England Studies and a BA from Yale University in English and Theater Studies. Engelman has taught courses in Women’s Studies, Public History, and the Historian as Detective at the University of Connecticut at Avery Point and written on wide-ranging topics including the maritime Underground Railroad, Route 66, Lydia E. Pinkham, and the threat of sea-level rise to maritime museums.
About Mystic Seaport Museum
Mystic Seaport Museum is the nation’s leading maritime museum. Founded in 1929 to gather and preserve the rapidly disappearing artifacts of America’s seafaring past, the Museum has grown to become a national center for research and education with the mission to “inspire an enduring connection to the American maritime experience.” The Museum’s grounds cover 19 acres on the Mystic River and include a re-created New England coastal village, a working shipyard, formal exhibit halls, and state-of-the-art collection storage facilities. The Museum is home to more than 500 historic watercraft, including four National Historic Landmark vessels, most notably the 1841 whaleship Charles W. Morgan.
For more information, please visit mysticseaport.org and follow the Museum onFacebook, X, YouTube, and Instagram.
Mystic Seaport Museum is thrilled to announce the successful hosting of the official launch event for the Connecticut Blue Economy Coalition. As a founding partner and the largest American maritime museum, Mystic Seaport Museum is committed to fostering a sustainable economic future in maritime industries across Connecticut through the advancement of the blue economy.
The event, made possible by the generous support of sponsors OceanX, AdvanceCT, and seCTer, saw significant participation from esteemed guests, including Senator Heather Somers, Senator Catherine Osten, Representative Holly Cheeseman, Representative Aundre Baumgardner, and Selectwoman Deborah Motycka Downie. Their presence and support underscore the importance of this initiative.
The highlight of the event was the celebratory signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, which outlines the coalition’s goals and strategic initiatives. This marks the first step in leveraging our networks and resources to promote Connecticut’s burgeoning blue economy. Representatives from each participating organization delivered flash talks, detailing their missions and the significance of the coalition.
The coalition’s members include:AdvanceCT, ClimateHaven, GreenWave, Mystic Seaport Museum, OceanX, Project Oceanology, seCTer, Thayer Mahan Inc., and UConn Avery Point.
Mystic Seaport Museum Board of Trustees Vice-Chairman Rich Clary emphasized the initiative’s importance for both the Museum and the state. The event concluded with a memorable boat ride on the historic steamboat, Sabino, recently upgraded with a diesel-electric engine. This allows the vessel to operate under electric power, achieving a 95% reduction in carbon emissions—exemplifying the Museum’s commitment to a sustainable ocean economy.
The mission of the Connecticut Blue Economy Coalition is to be the nexus for the Blue Economy in the State of Connecticut. As a networking and convening coalition of partners, we will bring stakeholders together to best determine strategies for supporting the growth and stability of the blue economy through education, acceleration, advocacy, and communication. Each organization brings its own set of strengths, infrastructure, networking opportunities, and skill sets to the coalition. As a collaboration, we will leverage our combined strengths to accelerate and empower a sustainable future for blue economic growth in Connecticut.
MYSTIC SEAPORT MUSEUM ANNOUNCES WELLS BOAT HALL, A $15 MILLION INITIATIVE TO CREATE A HOME FOR ITS ICONIC AMERICAN WATERCRAFT COLLECTION
New Wells Boat Hall to Be Unveiled in 2025, Pieter Nicholson Roos Appointed Curator, Generous Support Provided By Stan and Nancy Wells
Mystic, CT. [June 28, 2024] – Mystic Seaport Museum is pleased to announce the establishment of the Wells Boat Hall to exhibit the American Watercraft Collection, an estimated $15 million renovation to convert a section of the historic Rossie Mill—currently used as a storage facility—into a dynamic, publicly accessible, exhibition hall highlighting the Museum’s collection of historic small boats. The exhibition, curated by longtime cultural institutional leader Pieter Nicholson Roos, will capture the progression of American nautical innovation, showcasing the unique social history of each vessel andrevealing the scope of the extensive collection to the public for the first time.
“We are delighted to bring the American Watercraft Collection out of storage and into the public eye for our visitors and supporters,” says Peter Armstrong, President and CEO of Mystic Seaport Museum. “This renovation not only increases the size of our accessible campus but also allows us to unravel the stories that lie within these amazing vessels.”
The Wells Boat Hall will exhibit over 100 vessels, seldom seen by the public in the last 40 years. Estimated to be the largest and the most diverse small craft and engine collection in the world, the exhibition will feature the first vessel acquired by the Museum, Annie, a 1931 sandbagger, and will span 182 years from an indigenous dugout canoe to a modern-day Mini Transat racer. The public will be invited to engage in the stories of vessels in the collection from labor to leisure, from adventure to commerce, and beyond. Stories will include the Analuisa, a fishing boat used by Cuban refugees to escape to Florida in the summer of 1994, and Tango, the first boat pedaled across the Atlantic and holding the record as the fastest human-powered transatlantic crossing, completed in 40 days, pedaled by Connecticut resident Dwight Collins.
Located on the corner of Rossie Pentway and Greenmanville Avenue, and directly opposite the Museum’s Thompson Exhibition Building, the Wells Boat Hall will be housed in the historic Rossie Mill, built in 1898 as a velvet factory and once the largest employer in Mystic. The 35,000 square-foot warehouse will be renovated to include a new and ADA-compliant visitor entrance with a columned canopy, a new roof reflecting design typical of New England mill towers, and a fully integrated exhibition space. The renovation will allow the Museum to care for and exhibit the watercraft and related artifacts in an environment that showcases their importance and maintains their legacy while maintaining this historic building. The Wells Boat Hall will also double as a flexible community space for lectures and presentations, as well as new educational programs initiated by the American Institute of Maritime Studies at Mystic Seaport Museum.
Pieter Nicholson Roos has been appointed the Wells Boat Hall Exhibition Curator and will curate the exhibit. Roos, the former director of the Mark Twain House and Museum and a strategic advisor on climate change, will provide his decades of experience in preservation and maritime expertise.
“It’s with great excitement that I join Mystic Seaport Museum in unveiling its cherished collection to the public after years in storage,” shared Roos. “With the launch of the Wells Boat Hall, we will allow visitors to embark on a journey through time, finding their own connections to the array of stories on view and ensuring that these historic boats are preserved and remain in our contemporary consciousness.”
The American Watercraft Collection will be housed in the Wells Boat Hall, named after local residents and longtime Museum Trustee Stan Wells and his wife Nancy Wells. It is scheduled to open to the public in the fall of 2025.
About Mystic Seaport Museum
Mystic Seaport Museum is the nation’s leading maritime Museum. Founded in 1929 to gather and preserve the rapidly disappearing artifacts of America’s seafaring past, the Museum has grown to become a national center for research and education with the mission to “inspire an enduring connection to the American maritime experience.” The Museum’s grounds cover 19 acres on the Mystic River in Mystic, Connecticut, and include a recreated New England coastal village, a working shipyard, formal exhibit halls, and state-of-the-art artifact storage facilities. The Museum is home to more than 500 historic watercraft, including four National Historic Landmark vessels, most notably the 1841 whaleship CHARLES W. MORGAN. For more information, please visit mysticseaport.org and follow the Museum on Facebook, X, YouTube, and Instagram.
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Sophia Matsas
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Suzana Machado D’Oliveira, Expedition Director, Abercrombie & Kent and Alexander Bulazel, Trustee, Mystic Seaport Museum, Mystic, Connecticut (Photo credit: Christopher Ian McGregor)
Two hundred and three years ago Captain Nathaniel B. Palmer, American seal hunter, explorer, sailing captain, and ship designer sailed down to Marguerite Bay below the Antarctic Circle to discover what became known as Stonington Island, named after Palmer’s hometown of Stonington, Connecticut. The Island would eventually accommodate US and British Antarctic bases. This voyage was Palmer’s farthest point south during his historic explorations of the continent from 1819 to 1831. In 1820 Palmer was credited with the sighting of the Antarctic mainland peninsula from a hilltop on Deception Island while anchored in Whalers Bay. A portion of the peninsula now bears the name Palmer Land.
Sailors ditty box from Palmer’s 1820 voyage.
A ditty box from the Mystic-built sloop Hero, sailed by Palmer to Deception Island, is part of the Mystic Seaport Museum collections and is the oldest known artifact to exist from the Antarctic age of discovery, along with Palmer’s logbook housed in the Library of Congress. This 7″ x 3″ wooden ditty box from Hero was donated to the Museum in 1950. It is ornately carved and has the inscription, “L.B. Stonington Slp. Hero.” It is believed that the L. B. likely stands for Stanton L. Burdick a 17-year-old crew member who sailed with Palmer in the 1819-20 season to Deception Island and again in 1821.
Mystic Seaport Museum celebrated the bicentennial anniversary of Palmer’s sighting of the Antarctic mainland with the return of the ditty box to Deception Island’s Whalers Bay in January 2020, months ahead of the 200th anniversary. In 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic prevented the second historic bicentennial celebration of Captain Palmer’s farthest drive south to Stonington Island, Antarctica, for Mystic Seaport Museum and the community of Stonington, Connecticut; however, on January 25 of this year Alexander Bulazel, Trustee and Chair of the Exhibitions Committee for Mystic Seaport Museum, in association with luxury travel company Abercrombie & Kent, once again returned the ditty box to Stonington Island, Antarctica, for the historic anniversary celebration of Palmer’s exploratory voyage over two hundred and three years ago.
This issue of the Mystic Seaport Museum Magazine features our newest exhibition, Alexis Rockman: Oceanus, and articles on Blue Technology, the Blue Economy, and introduced species, highlighting a shift in perspective at the Museum to raise awareness and inspire conversations around the critical global issues that face our oceans due to the impacts of maritime activities as part of our collective cultural, social, and economic heritage. Also included is news from the Shipyard on the L.A. Dunton and Coronet projects, Sabino’s return to the water, and much more!
How My Internship at Mystic Seaport Museum Brought Me Closer to My Tribe’s Beading Heritage
By Cheyenne Morning Song Tracy, White Earth Anishinaabe (Ojibwe)
Photo by Cheyenne Morning Song Tracy, White Earth Anishinaabe. At Tomaquag Museum. Wampum and beaded medallions on a belt. Ca. 2000s
I was born in New London, raised in Groton, and have been coming to Mystic Seaport Museum since I was three. It’s always been a special place for me, so when I heard of the Museum’s internship program that was centered on the theme of Reimagining New England Histories, with the goal of including diverse narratives in the museum, I jumped at the chance to be involved. As a Native American woman, I have rarely seen this done, and I felt that this was something that I needed to be a part of. The experience has been far more impactful than I could have realized. During the internship, I had the opportunity to work with a Mystic Seaport Museum community partner, Tomaquag Museum in Exeter, Rhode Island. This museum is a Native American-run space that does not have specific ties to any one tribe. The Tomaquag Museum tells a cohesive story of the local tribes of New England. Unfortunately, due to a lack of funding and staffing, their collection hadn’t been inventoried in over 40 years. During the summer, my intern team and I were able to inventory their entire collection of belongings (The term belonging is used when describing artifacts in a collection to acknowledge personal connection of the people and communities who created and cared for them.
While doing this inventory, I was able to experience many amazing belongings. Working in a small room I got to know the beadwork intimately. Though not alive, the presence of the beaders that had stitched and worn the beadwork was still there. The beadwork has a life of its own, it opens a window into the thoughts and feelings of the beader. With every box I took off the shelves, opening and unwrapping the beadwork, I always felt my heartbeat get a little faster. While reflecting on this experience, I realized that the beaded makizin (Anishinaabek for moccasins) that I worked with were the first I had handled that were not mass-produced. While wearing protective gloves to prevent oils from my skin from getting onto the beadwork, I would run my hand over the beads softly, admiring their craftsmanship and how the beads caught the light and reflected patterns. The buckskin that these moccasins were made out of was almost always dried out from age, and the horsewoman in me wanted to use saddle soap to rehydrate them (though that would not have been a good idea). With the contribution of my research to accompany these belongings, I hope the presence of these past beaders can shine through all the brighter.
As I inventoried the belongings, I felt a strong connection to the beadwork of the northeastern coastal tribes; although I am an Anishinaabe of the White Earth reservation in Minnesota. Minnesota is referred to as the land of ten thousand lakes, and while over 5,000 miles from the Atlantic Ocean, the people have their own connection to water and waterways. My grandmother was raised by her grandparents and grew up on our reservation near Elbow Lake. Her grandparents raised her after her mother died at a young age from tuberculosis. They taught her the traditional ways of their ancestors. This included learning the language, making her a fluent speaker of Anishinaabek. (A note to the reader: Anishinaabe, Anishinaaba, and Anishinaabek are used interchangeably for the tribe depending on the region. Generally Anishinaabek is used in reference to the language). At the age of eight, her father moved her off the reservation causing her to lose much of her knowledge about our language and culture. Because of this, my mom and I did not get the chance to connect to the reservation or our heritage in the same way my grandmother was able to. My grandmother was never taught beadwork, so I was never able to learn beading from her or my mother, the traditional way of learning to bead. The year before my internship at Mystic Seaport Museum I bought an earring beading kit from another Native beader and began my own beadwork journey to connect with my Anishinaabe heritage.
During the first part of my internship, we were encouraged to go to the Educational Powwow at the Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center. Going to this powwow allowed me to see more contemporary beadwork that people were wearing. This is how I met a Shinnecock beader. We struck up a conversation over the beadwork that she had for sale and was working on. I am known by many to be a very shy person, but my ancestors must have given me some courage that day. Talking with her I told her about how I was learning to bead but was not very good. And she encouraged me to keep beading. Through beading, I made a new friend.
Gratefully, after the summer internship at Mystic Seaport Museum concluded, I was able to extend my work through the fall to work more with the beadwork at the Tomaquag Museum. My research was originally focused on what in the collection are Anishinaabe belongings or belongings inspired by Anishinaabe art and tools. My first step was to make a list of what I thought was or could be connected to one of these two categories. As I researched, I realized that what I knew most about and was connected to the deepest was the beadwork. In order to truly understand the difference between Anishinaabe beadwork and other tribes’ beadwork I needed to research the unique characteristics of each. The Anishinaabe are known for floral beadwork designs. As I studied and researched this beadwork, I observed that Anishinaabe traditional beadwork is fluid, circular, and flows, with lots of vines that were often made with opaque white beads. It is often stitched on black or red velvet, and occasionally on a mixture of buckskin and velvet. Flowers tend to be outlined in a different color than the flowers themselves. The petals tend to be oval in shape, and the beadwork is balanced but not mirrored and has S-curve motifs. The Anishinaabe are a woodland tribe. Though different from the woodland tribes of Connecticut and Rhode Island, the Anishinaabe share the use of floral patterns in their beadwork.
Photo by Cheyenne Morning Song Tracy, White Earth Anishinaabe. Parts from an Anishinaabe-style beaded moccasin. Tomaquag Museum collection, ca. early-mid 1900s.
Beadwork from the tribes in Connecticut and Rhode Island is different from Anishinaabe beadwork, as it incorporates wampum as well as the pan-Indian style of beading. Wampum are purple and white beads made out of the quahog (hard shell) clam. Traditionally these beads were used as gifts and to document agreements. Wampum belts are highly prized. When the Dutch arrived on Turtle Island (Turtle Island, the Native American name for North America, comes from the creation story about North America being on the back of a turtle.) they saw how prized wampum were and soon started to use it as currency, though wampum is not a currency in Native American culture. Coming into its own in the early 1900s, pan-Indian beadwork is a cohesive style that incorporates the styles of tribes across the United States in distinctive more geometric and western-themed depictions.
Photo by Cheyenne Morning Song Tracy, White Earth Anishinaabe . Broken quahog shells, ca. 2023.
Beading existed on Turtle Island long before the arrival of Europeans but this arrival marked a big change in beadwork. Before Europeans, beads were made out of seeds, animal bones, animal teeth, shells, and stones. The Anishinaabe are still renowned for the use of the natural material of porcupine quills. With European arrival came glass seed beads from Italy which brought a variety of colors to the beadwork of Native Americans. This portion of Native American beading history was discussed in Sargent, Whistler and Venetian Glass which closed on February 27. The beaded top hat embellished with wampum pictured below was on loan from the Tomaquag Museum. Also on loan was a necklace constructed from wampum and beads. These belongings are modern so color usage and style are different from older beadwork pieces. Historically, the harder the color was to achieve the more valuable the bead was. The value of beads would also change from tribe to tribe as different tribes valued different colors. But across all tribes, the color that was highly prized was sky blue as it was not something that was achievable in dyes that were available on Turtle Island.
(left) Beaded top hat by Yolanda Smith, Seaconke Wampanoag. (right) Trade bead necklace by Dan Loudfoot Simonds, Mashantucket Pequot (not recognized). Sargent, Whistler & Venetian Glass: American Artists and the Magic of Murano. Courtesy of Mystic Seaport Museum.Photo by Cheyenne Morning Song Tracy, White Earth Anishinaabe. Beaded top hat by Yolanda Smith, Seaconke Wampanoag. Top view of hat.
When I first started beading I was making earrings either fringe or powwow style. Beading anything but earrings was intimidating to me as it was so much more time and work. This feeling changed when working with the beadwork at Tomaquag. To feel them, to see them up close, I was inspired by the familiarity of these new beading techniques. Fringe requires only one needle, beads, and thread. While powwow style earrings require the two-needle method, where one thread holds the beads and the other tacks them down onto the backing every two or three beads. The two-needle method is used on larger pieces of beadwork for intricate designs. While the two-needle method sounds more complicated it is in fact just as easy as the fringe earrings. The process of making both these styles of earrings is different, but both are equally important to Native American culture. Another method, one I have yet to try, called lazy or lain stitch is used to cover a larger piece, like makizin, at a faster rate. To do this the beads are stitched down every seven to eight beads in line. There is also loom beading which requires a special loom to weave the beads into one piece. This can be used to make necklaces, bracelets, and lines of beadwork that can be attached to clothes. While there are many other styles of beadwork as well, the ones that I have studied at Tomaquag are lazy/lain stitch, two-needle, and loom beading. The different styles of beading can be overwhelming, but they each are used to achieve a different goal in a beader’s work.
Photo and beading by Cheyenne Morning Song Tracy, White Earth Anishinaabe. In progress loom-beaded belt, ca. 2022-2023 Colors inspired by Anishinaabe beading pattern from Beads To Buckskin Volume Two.
As the summer progressed, I gained more confidence. I never imagined I would attempt to stitch a larger floral beaded design. These are what many imagine when they think of Anishinabek beading. I created the floral work you see in the image for the shoulder pad of a bag for my fiance, my biggest cheerleader. As he saw me growing, he made me a larger bead loom so I could create larger beadwork. I decided I wanted to make a belt. I used a pattern from Beads To Buckskins Volume Two by Peggy Sue Henry. This pattern is in the pan-Indian style, but the colors are inspired by my Anishinabek heritage.
For a long time, I have wanted to bead a pair of makizins that belonged to my grandmother. After her passing in 2012 from cancer I was given her makizins (we both had big feet and I am the only one in the family they fit). While they were not handmade, they belonged to my grandmother and still hold a great connection to her. I think of her when I wear them. Before the work I did at Tomaquag, I was nervous about doing anything with her makizins, as I felt I didn’t know the first thing about beading them. When working with all the beautifully decorated makizins at Tomaquag it was clear, I had to learn to bead my grandmother’s makizins. After nearly a year on this challenging journey, today, when I hold the pair of moccasins from my grandmother, and I eye the blank canvas of the empty hide on top yearning for color and light … I have a feeling I might be ready.
I am so grateful for all that I was able to learn and want to say a big miigwetch (Thank you) to the staff at Mystic Seaport Museum, the staff at Tomaquag Museum, and of course my supportive fiancé.
Photo and beading by Cheyenne Morning Song Tracy,White Earth Anishinaabe. Beaded shoulder pad for a messenger bag, ca. 2022, owned by Antonio C. Pereira.
Barkwell, Lawrence J. “Characteristics of Metis Beadwork.” The Virtual Museum of Métis History and Culture, September 11, 2013. https://www.metismuseum.ca/.
