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“We Have Always Been Here”
A Historic Look at the Native Americans of Virginia
Written by
Robyn Wolfe
At the time of European colonization three major
tribes with an estimated population of 50,000 indigenous
people lived in what is now the Commonwealth of
Virginia. The Algonquian occupied the coastal region,
and the Siouan and Iroquoian lived in the interior of
Virginia Indian Territory. Today their numbers have
dwindled to only 5,000 and fewer than 2,000 acres of
reservation land remains from treaties signed with the
English colonists during the 17th century. Today the
Federal government is considering recognition to six non-reservation tribes. The
problem is that the tribes would have to meet the federal criteria for “continuity and
retention of identity.” Unfortunately much of their vital records including birth and
marriage documentation were destroyed or altered during the American Civil War and
the Racial Integrity Act of 1924. According to "Virginia's First People-Past And Present"
(2005), if you ask any Virginia Indian, "When did you come to this land?" he or she will
tell you, "We have always been here."
In the early years of our country’s colonization relationships between Native
Americans, and the English were tense. The major cause was the cultural differences

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between the two groups of people. The Native Americans believed the English and their
foreign culture had been forced upon them. This included the conversion to Christianity.
The once mighty tribes of Virginia were diminished to a tributary status and forced to
make yearly payments to the colonial government in order to keep their independence.
Much of their land was lost through treaty after treaty that was designed to confining
them to small reservations. As English settlements grew in Virginia the populations of
the Native Americans became smaller and smaller. Much of the tribal culture and
languages were gone. By 1800, Native American tongues were rarely heard.
In the 1800s, the prevailing white culture in Virginia continued pushing the Native
Americans from their homelands. Pressure was brought to remove each of the four
remaining reservations and end the Native Americans status as tribes. Poverty forced
most of the remaining tribes of the Gingaskin (Accomac) Reservation on the Eastern
Shore to sell their land. The Pamunkey and Mattaponi became the last two reservations
to withstand the attempts of termination.
After the Civil War brought change to the reservation tribes as they began to reclaim
their cultural identities. The descendants of the once powerful Powhatan Indians wanted
to improve their image and get the message out that they were still alive and proud of
the native heritage. Also after the Civil War, state laws restricted a Virginia Native
American’s ability to travel, testify in court, and inherit property. Disunion between
White, Black, and Indian cultures resulted in strict, three-way segregation in schools and
churches.

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In the early 1900s Virginia’s Native Americans made an attempt to reorganize
themselves into tribes. This was seen as a threat by some people who wanted to keep
the white race “pure.” A group known as the Anglo-Saxon Club of America led by Dr.
Walter Plecker went before the General Assembly and successfully got passed the
Racial Integrity Law of 1924. The law stated in matters of births, marriages, and deaths
the Commonwealth of Virginia would only recognize two races, White and Black.
From 1912 to 1946 Dr. Plecker who was the registrar of the Bureau of Vital
Statistics at the time waged his own one-man war against Virginia’s Native American
people. As far as he was concerned people of Native American decent just did not exist.
The Racial Integrity Law of 1924 also made it illegal for any Native American to attend a
white school or marry a White person. If they wanted to marry they had to do so out-of-
state. Legally they had also lost any means of documenting population records,
movements of family, or family ties through Virginia state and county records.
Native American’s in Virginia were also not allowed into White or Black churches and
schools. This did not stop them from opening their own schools and up until the 1950s
did not go beyond the seventh grade. To go to high school young Native American
students were sent to schools outside of Virginia. Virginia’s Native Americans were
highly motivated to succeed. Many attended college and began working in such
occupations from radio announcers to accountants. After the Civil Rights movement of
the 1960s requiring school integration removed the need for Virginia Native American
students to leave the Commonwealth in order to further their education.

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In 1967 the Racial Integrity Act was also repealed by the United States Supreme
Court citing that it was unconstitutional. Now Virginia’s Native American’s could marry
whom they wanted to as well as have their birth certificates changed to show their
Indian identity.
Today, Virginia’s Native American’s continue to build back their sense of identity.
They have created tribal centers that are the symbols of unity and pride. In 1988 the
United Indians of Virginia was formed to address the educational issues that affect
Native Americans in the Commonwealth. This unified voice and newfound dominance
gives the Native American the ability to confront and resolve the many diverse problems
facing all Virginia tribes.
In 2012 there are eleven tribes in Virginia and two small reservations. There are
2,500 people on the tribal registers, and the census figures show another 15,000 people
of Indian ancestry living across Virginia ("Virginia's First People-Past And Present",
2005). Long ago European colonists arriving in Virginia may have been greeted with,
"Wingapo”, meaning “Welcome, my beloved friend.” Today through Pow Wows and
other cultural events Virginia’s Indian tribes meet with the public to demonstrate crafts,
dances, and share their vast and rich history.
Many of Virginia’s Native American’s still face the challenge of balancing their lives in
two worlds. During the week they work regular jobs and on weekends they are involved
with their individual tribes doing tribal work. Never-the-less we are all fortunate to have
Virginia’s Native American culture by the people “who have always been here.”

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References
Virginia's First People-Past and Present. (2005). Retrieved from
http://virginiaindians.pwnet.org/index.php
Native American Tribes of Virginia. (1998-2011). Retrieved from http://www.native-
languages.org/virginia.htm
Virginia's Early Relationship with Native Americans. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentation
s/timeline/colonial/indians/