The Wampanoag Story: 10,000 Years of Food, Land, and Survival in Massachusetts

This is a very special episode of Unpacked by Afar. This week we hosted Unpacked Live, a—you guessed it—live version of the podcast in partnership with Visit California in Boston, Massachusetts. (You can ⁠watch the full conversation on YouTube⁠.)

The event celebrated California's diverse Native communities, and host Aislyn Greene was joined on stage by John Acuna, a Hoopa Valley tribal member and Klamath River kayak guide (listen to his episode), and Christina Lonewolf Martinez, a private chef based in Monterey uniting the worlds of fine-dining and Indigenous ingredients like salmon, seaweed, and acorns (listen to her episode).

Because the talk was in Boston, we wanted to acknowledge that Massachusetts is the original land of the Wampanoag, who have called this region home for more than 10,000 years. Angela C. Marcellino, a member of the present-day Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, joined us on stage to share a brief history, and today we're going deeper.

Angela is a chef, historian, and author of The True Natives of Cape Cod, Massachusetts and Their Food Ways. In this in-depth episode, Angela shares the real story of the original Pilgrim-Wampanoag encounter, how her tribe has retained and expanded its culture, and the best ways that travelers can engage respectfully.

In this episode, you'll learn

The true history of the Wampanoag-Pilgrim encounter and Squanto's role in American history

How Harvard University's 1650 charter was originally dedicated to educating Wampanoag children

Why the Mashpee became realtors to protect their ancestral lands

How ancient foodways and communal cooking traditions keep the Mashpee culture alive today

The 30-year journey to federal recognition and what sovereignty means for the tribe

Meet this week's guest

Angela C. Marcellino, chef, historian, and author of The True Natives of Cape Cod, Massachusetts and Their Food Ways

Resources

Learn about the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and visit their cultural center

Jesse Little Doe's MacArthur Award-winning work revitalizing the Wampanoag language

The Old Indian Meeting House, one of the oldest congregations in America

Don't miss these moments

[02:00] Angela's unexpected career path: from tribal grant management to real estate—and why land ownership matters

[04:00] The shocking story of Indian districts and forced assimilation in Massachusetts

[07:00] Why the Pilgrims really came to America (hint: it wasn't just religious freedom)

[09:00] Squanto's heartbreaking return to find Pilgrim houses on his village's footprints

[13:00] How the Mashpee church became a center for political resistance

[15:00] The 1970s development boom that changed everything for the Mashpee

[19:00] Coming home to Mashpee: communal living and 10,000-year-old recipes

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