Vermont Abenaki Artists Association
Honoring Abenaki history, culture, and art since 2013.
Joseph Bruchac to Launch New Book Called Dawn Land - Mark you calendar now! You don't want to miss this ZOOM presentation by this nationally acclaimed Abenaki author. Remembering The Dawn Land: A presentation on the historical novel Dawn Land by its author, Joseph Bruchac The area we now refer to as Western New England ... Read more
When colonizers arrived in Sheet'ka (Sitka, Alaska), the homeland of the Tlingit people, they imported devastating infectious diseases. Russian and Euro-American colonizers' writings describe these diseases as a marker of colonizers' self-assumed superiority. Colonizers saw vaccines as introducing a material part of European technology that would ultimately lead to Tlingit people's acceptance of Russian and ... Read more
Tuesday, April 16 2:00-4:00 P.M. Don't miss "Highlighting Abenaki: UVM Collaborations that Bridge Communities" in the Silver Maple Ballroom Davis Center" or Streaming at https://go.uvm.edu/ highlightingabenaki. "Western Abenaki people are the traditional and current stewards of the land on which UVM stands. Some UVM faculty, staff, and students have established and maintain productive relationships with ... Read more
Nebizun: Water is Life May 1 to October 15, 2024 Nebizun (alternately spelled Nebizon) is the Abenaki word for medicine and the root word Nebi is the Abenaki word for water. The rivers and tributaries of N’Dakinna (our homeland) were our highways for traveling and the water itself is important to the species of fish ... Read more
Hunting and Fishing: A Case Study in Cultural Continuity - Frederick M. Wiseman, PhD. American Abenaki people in Vermont were and are culturally competent in many types of Indigenous hunting and trapping techniques as well as the use of traditional hunting spirituality. They have used sophisticated Native American technologies such as canoes and snowshoes to ... Read more
Join us as we celebrate Abenaki Recognition and Heritage Week. Register for "The Case of the 1790s Peace Medal" On Thursday, May 9 at 6:30 pm. Join Prof. Frederick Matthew Wiseman on the Heritage Hunt as he uses vintage Dark Academy science, deduction, and technology to venture cautiously into the exclusive and elitist world of ... Read more
After 12 years of inactivity, the Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi Community Events Committee and Tribal Council are thrilled to announce the return of our annual Memorial Day weekend Heritage Celebration. With collaboration from Swanton Rec for a new location, this Heritage Celebration will be filled with tribal drumming, dancing, singing, food vendors and craft vendors. ... Read more
Beyond the Curve: the American Abenaki COVID Experience reopens on June 7–July 19. Gallery Hours Thursday & Friday: 10am–5pm Saturday: 10am–3pm Cost: Donations accepted - no charge for the exhibit Curatorial statement: “In March 2020, the world stood still as businesses and schools around the world closed in response to the global pandemic. Broadcast media, ... Read more
History Alive at KEMP PARK in Hillsboro, New Hampshire! Begin your summer by the Contoocook River on a very exciting Saturday, June 8, 2024 from 9 am to 4. NOTE: June 7th from 8:30 to 4:00 The morning is dedicated to Hillsborough-Deering school students. The afternoon will be open to homeschoolers and the public. Click ... Read more
The Missisquoi Band of Abenaki and Vermont Forests, Parks, and Recreation invites you to join a Black Ash Pounding event at Lake Carmi State Park! Happening Sunday, June 9th & Monday, June 10th from 10am to 4pm. No entrance fee on Sunday, June 9th. Monday, June 10th, $5 adults and $2 Children. Hope to see ... Read more
Join us for a demonstration of ash splint basket-making and learn more about Abenaki culture with Sherry Gould. Sherry will also bring some of the baskets she has worked on. Sherry Gould studied Abenaki fancy baskets with master artist Jeanie Brink of Barre, VT through a grant from the New Hampshire Arts Council Folk Arts ... Read more
Join Vermont’s Native American community for Abenaki Heritage Weekend and Arts Marketplace on June 29-30 at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum to explore Abenaki perspectives on life in the Champlain Valley. Activities include storytelling, craft demonstrations, drumming, singing, and more. Bring a picnic basket for your lunch. Presented by Vermont Abenaki Artists Association, this event brings ... Read more
Gail Golec has been a professional archaeologist for over 20 years, working primarily in the Middle Connecticut River Valley of New Hampshire and Vermont. Some of her recent work includes the Recovering Black History of the Monadnock Region project and the Bellows Falls Petroglyph project for which she works closely with Elnu and other Abenaki ... Read more
Abenaki Day - Abenaki: People of the Dawn Land August 3, 2024 10:00 am to 2:00 pm Abenaki Alliance, Tucker Mountain Town Forest & Newbury Historical Society Honor Those Who Came Before At the East Entrance Lawn (By the Parking Lot) Bring Friends, Family and a Picnic Lunch! 11:00 AM Performance by Abenaki Singer-Songwriter Bryan ... Read more
11th Annual Pocumtuck Homelands Festival: A Celebration of Native American Art, Music, and Cultures, Saturday, August 3, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. & Sunday, August 4, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Unity Park Waterfront, Turners Falls, MA. Presentations and performances by Mohawk elder Tom Porter; Nipmuck Flute Player Hawk Henries; Mi'kmaq - Celtic Music with ... Read more
Welcome to the 2024 Abenaki Land Link Project Heritage Festival! The event will take place on Saturday, August 10th at The Wheeler Homestead on 1100 Dorset Street, South Burlington, Vermont from 11 am-3 pm. All parking will be at 400 Swift Street (The Islamic Society)...across the street. Come join us at Common Roots' Wheeler Homestead ... Read more
Coming up this August 12-20th, an Abenaki Harvesting & Medicine Making Workshop with Carol McGranaghan!Free and open to all Abenaki. Day 1: August 12th 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. - Rematriation Site Orientation - site tour, plant introductions, and traditional harvest practices. Day 2: August 20th 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. - Abenaki Harvest Ways ... Read more
Coming up this August 12-20th, an Abenaki Harvesting & Medicine Making Workshop with Carol McGranaghan!Free and open to all Abenaki. Day 1: August 12th 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. - Rematriation Site Orientation - site tour, plant introductions, and traditional harvest practices. Day 2: August 20th 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. - Abenaki Harvest Ways ... Read more
The Green Corn Celebration is this weekend at the Fort at No 4. Come visit with Chief Roger Longtoe and many others as they tell the story of how and why the settlers at the Fort at No 4 and the native Abenaki forged relationships. Open at 10 am, Saturday and Sunday. <---> Come back ... Read more
Mark your calendars! Our 2024 Nulhegan Gathering will be held at Mount Norris Scout Reservation on August 24th and 25th. It will open on August 23rd for Nulhegan Citizens only. Throughout the weekend there will singing, storytelling, drumming, and dancing along with other activities to be enjoyed by adults and children. Visit the Nulhegan website for more ... Read more
Back by popular demand, Rhonda Besaw will share her skills of creating Wabanaki raised beadwork flowers with participants. Join Rhonda, a highly skilled Wabanaki Raised Bead artist, to create a raised bead flower, on Saturday, September 7th at 2 PM at Whitefield Public Library. Open to adults and teens - minimum 6 students - capped ... Read more
It's time for the Green Corn Gathering! Mark your calendar now to join the Elnu Abenaki at the Wantastegok Cultural Center for the Green Corn Gathering. This gathering will be an opportunity to celebrate the Fall Equinox and Harvest. The gathering will consist of ceremony, singing, dancing, and a corn-based potluck! If you plan to ... Read more
Join us Sunday, September 29, for MKIM’s Harvest Moon Festival celebrating the traditional harvest season. This family-friendly event features Native foods, craft demonstrations, activities for kids, and educational exhibits. Visitors will learn how to make dolls from corn husks, weave dreamcatchers, try their hand at beading, and enjoy activities and games. Dramatic stories about the ... Read more
It’s time to start planning for Indigenous Peoples' Day Rocks! This is IPD’s 5th year and they're busy making arrangements for an event that will be bigger and better than ever! Again this year, it is being held in Stowe, VT, but they've changed the day to the Saturday of Indigenous Peoples Day weekend: October ... Read more
New Speaker Series Zoom Presentation: An Indigenous Perspective on Nature: Working Together as Allies Author and storyteller Randy Kritkausky, a federally enrolled tribal member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation who lives in Vermont, writes about awakening to Native American spiritual teachings. He has come to regard owls, coy-wolves, and the forest enveloping his home as ... Read more
Join Rhonda Besaw for a 3-day workshop to learn how to create a Wabanaki Beaded Purse with a blueberry design. The dates are October 16th, October 26th, and November 2nd, 2024, from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. Attendance at all 3 workshops is mandatory. There is a $100 materials fee, payable to Rhonda Besaw, to ... Read more
New Speaker Series Zoom Presentation: Encountering Ndakinna: Reconsidering Abenaki History in Vermont and New Hampshire Indigenous histories are deeply rooted in northern New England, particularly in present-day Vermont and New Hampshire, a region collectively known to Abenaki people as Ndakinna (“our homeland”). Early colonial explorers recognized the abundant natural resources that made this territory so ... Read more
Chief Roger Longtoe Sheehan will do a discussion around the historic and contemporary use and significance of wampum and wampum belts in our community. He will also bring examples and replicas to see. ELNU/ATOWI EVENTS ALL ARE FREE, OPEN TO ALL If you are interested in joining, please register with the following link: https://forms.gle/1NVNZAUigywzJ7qG9 As ... Read more
This workshop, led by Linda Longtoe Sheehan, will teach participants how to make and decorate a pair of traditional, eastern woodlands leggings. If you are interested in joining, please register with the following link: https://forms.gle/LoaaWyJjdqQV46yGA As always, please feel free to share these events with others, and don't forgot to sign up for the Atowi’s ... Read more
Join us for a Community Paint Party with mural artists of Commonwealth Murals to paint a new 120-foot, nature-inspired mural in our historical grain bunker, now called The Landing, which promises to be a place for quiet reflection, to sit and refuel, and for rest. This spring, thanks to a planning grant from the Vermont ... Read more
Pending the availability of snow, Nulhegan plans to have their snow snake games after the regularly scheduled Tribal Council meeting. The games should commence after the meeting and the pot ... Read more
Pending the availability of snow ........... Join us for our third annual Snow Snake Event. The museum will be open and we will have hot cocoa and s'mores. Outside events ... Read more
Come and learn the songs and the drum beat of Mother Earth. If you haven’t made a drum yet please see other post and get signed up and come learn with Chief Gagne and Circle of Courage Youth Leader. Bring your newly created hand drum and practice 2 or 3 Abenaki songs. One take home ... Read more
Lecture Series at The Frederick Gunn School’s Thomas S. Perakos Arts & Community Center 22 Kirby Road, Washington, CT Join a panel of Indigenous educators for a series of presentations and a roundtable discussion on the importance of centering Indigenous knowledge in education for non-Indigenous publics. This roundtable welcomes discussion about the new Connecticut Social ... Read more
Another Drum Making Class, open to all tribal citizens. Learn to make a drum, offer gratitude to Mother Earth and the animals for the supplies and how to show respect and protection to the drum. Limited Spots, pre-registrarion required: https://forms.gle/ek1NSNDGEvHdJQNp7
Join Elnu Abenaki Chief Roger in the North Barn from 2-4 pm on March 29 for the traditional Abenaki winter pastime of storytelling and song. Roger Longtoe Sheehan is the Sôgmô (Chief) of the Elnu Abenaki Tribe and a talented Abenaki artist, Native musician, historian, and educator. Having spent most of his life researching Native ... Read more
Led by Chief Brenda Gagne - Limited Spots Available Must attend both Sundays to complete both medicine bag and rattle. Pre-registration required: https://forms.gle/LVEYvYC5CJPhNWc4A
Come and learn the songs and the drum beat of Mother Earth. If you haven’t made a drum yet please see other post and get signed up and come learn with Chief Gagne and Circle of Courage Youth Leader. Bring your newly created hand drum and practice 2 or 3 Abenaki songs. One take home ... Read more
Led by Chief Brenda Gagne – Limited Spots Available Must attend both Sundays to complete both medicine bag and rattle. Pre-registration required: https://forms.gle/LVEYvYC5CJPhNWc4A
Please join the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs to learn about the state's Tribal Recognition process and the Vermont Abenaki in their own words. When: April 23, 2025 from 4:30-6:00 PM Where: Vermont Statehouse, Room 11
The Vermont Abenakis, 1790-2020 Given the apparent confusion regarding the ethnicity, history, social organization and cultural competence of the four Vermont State-recognized tribes, Abenaki Recognition and Heritage Week, 2024 may be good time to reflect upon an aboriginal presence in Vermont. Through PowerPoint lecture and demonstration, author Dr. Frederick Wiseman will address the ethnicity of ... Read more
Deep Roots, Strong Branches - The American Abenaki Abenaki people have lived in N’Dakinna (our Homeland) for more than 12,000 years. Abenaki culture is a complex network of people, places, ... Read more
The Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi Community Events Committee and Tribal Council are thrilled to announce the return of our annual Memorial Day weekend Heritage Celebration. With collaboration from Swanton Rec, this Heritage Celebration will be filled with tribal drumming, dancing, singing, food vendors and craft vendors. Free admission, open to the public. 10am-5pm Saturday 5/24/25 ... Read more
Nebizun (alternately spelled Nebizon) is the Abenaki word for medicine and the root word Nebi is the Abenaki word for water. The rivers and tributaries of N’Dakinna (our homeland) were ... Read more
Join Vermont’s Native American community for Abenaki Heritage Weekend and Arts Marketplace June 14-15 at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Vergennes, VT. Admission FREE. Rain or shine. Citizens of Vermont’s Elnu, Nulhegan, Koasek, and Missisquoi Tribes share perspectives on life in the Champlain Valley. Storytelling, craft demonstrations, drumming, singing, and children’s play area. Featured arts include ... Read more
Native American Arts Marketplace presented by Vermont Abenaki Artists Association at Abenaki Heritage Weekend, June 14-15 at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Vergennes, VT. Admission FREE. Featured arts include jewelry, wampum, baskets, stonework, woodworking and more. Explore Abenaki perspectives on life in the Champlain Valley with storytelling, drumming, and singing by citizens of the Elnu, Nulhegan, ... Read more
Join Dr. Frederick Wiseman as he premieres his new book "Something of Value: The Vermont Abenaki experience: 1790-2020." Using the twin concepts of cultural continuity and cultural competency, it is a brief, peer-reviewed introduction to the little-known genealogy, history, arts, gardening, architecture, and social organization of the Vermont Abenaki community. Building on Wiseman’s 35 years ... Read more
The physical layout of the Abenaki territory we call “Ndakinna” includes multiple waterways, valleys, mountains, rock formations, etc. that shape the contours of the land. Many of these are still known by locative terms, in the Abenaki language, that describe their physical details. Some places are also known through oral traditions that reference ancient events ... Read more
Save the date for our biggest event of the year! Join us for an unforgettable celebration of culture, community, and tradition at MKIM’s 24th Annual Intertribal Powwow! Experience the vibrant colors of regalia, powerful dances, heartwarming music, and over 20 traders with handmade crafts — this event offers something for everyone. Whether you’re learning about ... Read more
A celebration of Native American Art, Music, and Cultures: Free Accessible Family Friendly Appeals to all ages and backgrounds Traditional music. Native Drums. Circle dances. Children's activities. 40 Indigenous artists selling beautiful creations. Indigenous history talks. Contemporary music. Food vendors include indigenous fare. MORE!
Join us for a shared meal and celebration with Chief Roger Longtoe and members of the Elnu Abenaki as they present the Green Corn Ceremony — a traditional celebration of gratitude, renewal, and the first corn harvest of the season. The Green Corn Ceremony is a sacred and time-honored practice among many Native American ... Read more
Explore to Learn: Art of Remembering: Songs of the Adirondacks with Jesse Bowman Bruchac on Saturday, August 16th, 12:00–1:00pm! Free with a suggested donation! https://secure.lglforms.com/.../s/qKuPnxkpqeqYVVHd75eouw... Join Jesse for a music-centered ... Read more
The Nulhegan Abenaki Gathering will take place on August 23-24, 2025 at the Mt. Norris Scout Reservation in Eden Mills, VT. (Note that Abenaki citizens may arrive on Friday, August 22nd.) To see more information about the Nulhegan Abenaki Annual Gathering, click here.
STONE LANGUAGE - An American Abenaki Bioculture Seminar Series 10:00 AM-3:30 PM Community Room, The Vermont History Center 60 Washington St., Barre, VT Upcoming seminar schedule: October 11, 2025. Something of ... Read more
The Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum appreciated all who attended and participated at this year’s 24th annual Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum powwow.It has been decided to extend the fun as part of exploring a different weekend for cooler weather and the decision has been made to add a 1-DAY ONLY ENCORE POWWOW to this year's calendar. ... Read more
The Abenaki Land Link Project Harvest Festival is celebration of the harvest of Indigenous Seeds. Free Event! Hosted by the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation and Common Roots Family friendly activities: Abenaki Artisans, Green Corn cultural performance, storytelling, Three Sisters Food Tastes, Picnicking - BYO, corn grinding and journeycake baking, bean shucking, ... Read more
In partnership with Chief Donald Stevens and the Nulhegan Abenaki, major sponsors Alnôbaiwi and the Vermont Arts Council, with our host The Shelburne Farms, musician donor The Alchemist, donors, musicians, educators, vendors, exhibitors, and volunteers we look forward to our sixth annual Indigenous Peoples’ Day Rocks! celebration, named one of Vermont Chamber of Commerce’s Top ... Read more
An Indigenous People’s Day Celebration The Community Room, The Vermont History Center 60 Washington St. Barre, VT 10:00 AM-3:30 PM. October 11, 2025 Introduction & Backstory The reality underwriting Vermont’s neglected Indian community is totally unlike the rather controversial public image advocated by University of Vermont scholars and department heads, the Vermont media, and even ... Read more
The Culminating Public Event of National Wildlife Refuge Week. Missisquoi Wildlife Refuge Headquarters, 29 Tabor Road, Swanton, VT 9:30 AM-4:00 PM. October 12, 2025 Introduction to the Event Scholars have ... Read more
Elnu Abenaki and the Atowi Project invites you to join a community celebration of Indigenous Peoples' Day on Monday, October 13 from 12-4pm at the Retreat Farm’s North Barn. The celebration will feature songs, storytelling, and demonstrations by Indigenous artists. The gathering is free and the public is very welcome, by intention! Indigenous-inspired food from ... Read more