Today in History—March 16: The Day Samoset Walked into Plymouth Colony

March 16, 1621: The Pilgrims' first visitor had a question

“Welcome, Englishmen! Do you have beer?”

Those were the first words that Samoset, an Abenaki leader, spoke to the Pilgrims at Plymouth colony. He carried a bow and an empty quiver—a sign he meant no aggression—and wore a loincloth and moccasins.

Concerned that he might be cold, the Pilgrims offered him a horsehair coat.

After landing in November 1620, the Pilgrims had a bad winter. Half had died of disease or starvation. They had seen members of the Wampanoag and Nauset tribes watching them from afar, and some of their tools had disappeared. A brief exchange of arrows and gunfire had also taken place, but the groups had never actually met.

Until now. Astonished probably doesn’t begin to cover it.

They treated Samoset to “strong water” (probably brandy), biscuit, butter, and cheese (alas, they had no beer left). He stayed overnight, an arrangement that both delighted and terrified the Pilgrims. He left but returned with five other Wampanoag men, the cautious beginnings of trade.

On March 22 Samoset returned again, this time with Squanto, the only other Native American on the Eastern seaboard who spoke English.

Samoset had learned a bit of the language from traders and fishermen who visited his island home off the coast of Maine. Squanto’s story was darker: He was kidnapped by British sailors—twice. He learned fluent English and Spanish during his enslavement. When he finally returned home in 1619, he discovered that his tribe, the Patuxet, had been wiped out by smallpox. The Wampanoag, about 40 miles inland, took Squanto in.

Fun Fact

Squanto showed the Pilgrims how to plant crops in mounds—traditional Three Sisters gardening. Befuddled Pilgrims quickly went back to planting in rows.

Samoset had also conveyed to Chief Massasoit, the leader of the Wampanoag Confederacy, the Pilgrims’ intentions. Massasoit and 60 of his men soon arrived for a meeting. The two sides—warily at first—formed an alliance. The treaty favored the English: The Wampanoag had to disarm, while the colonists kept their muskets.

The next morning Squanto showed the Pilgrims how to fish for eels—which they declared “fat and sweet.” He spent that spring teaching them how to plant, fish, and hunt, occasionally using his position as translator to advance his standing with both sides.

The peace agreement held for half a century, and the Pilgrims even eventually replenished their beer stocks.