Join history and reading enthusiasts at Wistariahurst Museum on Tuesday evenings in October to read and discuss a different perspective of the beginning of the American story in Linda Coombs Colonization and the Wampanoag Story. As a way to expand our historical knowledge of Indigenous culture, we will investigate a more inclusive narrative as we gather to share thoughts and consider a differing viewpoint.

Our discussion group will meet on Tuesday evenings from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in October with a Culminating event on Saturday afternoon, November 9 with guest speaker Linda Coombs the author.

When you think about the beginning of the American story, what comes to mind? Three ships in 1492, or perhaps buckled hats and shoes stepped off of the Mayflower, ready to start a new country. But the truth is, Christopher Columbus, the Pilgrims, and the Colonists didn’t arrive at a vast, empty land ready to be developed. They arrived to find people and communities living in harmony with the land they had inhabited for thousands of years, and they quickly disrupted everything they saw. From its “discovery” by Europeans to the first Thanksgiving, the story of America’s earliest days has been carefully misrepresented. Colonization and the Wampanoag Story by Linda Coombs tells the story from the perspective of the New England Indigenous Nations that these outsiders found when they arrived, this is the true story of how America as we know it today began.

Linda Coombs (Aquinnah Wampanoag) is an author and historian from the Wampanoag Tribe of Aquinnah, and lives in the Wampanoag community of Mashpee on Cape Cod, MA. Coombs began her museum career in an internship at the Boston Children’s Museum, and later worked there in the Native American Program. She and her colleague Paulla Dove Jennings (Narragansett) wrote children’s books for a museum series highlighting aspects of southern New England tribal cultures. Coombs also worked for 30 years in the Wampanoag Indigenous Program (WIP) of Plimoth Plantation, including 15 years as WIP’s Associate Director; and 9 years at the Aquinnah Cultural Center. Presently she does independent museum consulting and cultural presentations.

Thanks to a generous donation of books from The Massachusetts Center for the Book’s Great Reads About Great Places program, Wistariahurst has 13 copies of the book to loan out to participants on a first-come, first-served basis. Great Reads titles celebrate our state’s unique culture and literary heritage, inspiring local conversations and spurring engagement.

Week #1: Tuesday, October 1 having read pages 1-50

Week #2: Tuesday, October 8 having read pages 51 – 128

Week #3: Tuesday, October 15 having read pages 130 – 188

Week #4: Tuesday, October 22 having read pages 190 – end

Week #5: Saturday 11/9 Culminating Event with Guest Speaker Linda Coombs Author