The University of Rhode Island, including the area known as the North Woods, occupy unceded territory of the Narragansett Nation and the Niantic People. There has been a continual presence of the Narragansett Nation on this land for over 30,000 years, and they remain the sovereign stewards of this land. This is a space of Indigenous knowledge and history, and our engagement with the North Woods must honor and respect the continuing relationships between Indigenous peoples and this land. Our work includes teaching and learning more about Indigenous history and present-day communities, and the ongoing process of becoming stewards of the land we, too, inhabit. In researching and writing about the history of this land, we respect the sovereignty, history, and stories of the Narragansett Nation, Niantic Peoples, and other Indigenous organizations, and use this information with permission.

Resources

The authors of this project recognize the harmful legacies of settler colonialism and indigenous genocide in the United States. To learn more about the Morrill Act, which legalized and orchestrated the sale of indigenous lands to fund public Land Grant universities, visit https://www.landgrabu.org/.

The Tomaquag Museum is an Indigenous-led institution that provides cultural education, preserves Indigenous histories, and advocates for Indigenous Empowerment. The Tomaquag Museum is actively working on constructing and transitioning to a new campus on 18 acres of land adjacent to URI.

Request for Comments

We welcome feedback or comments from the community about this page, and any others on our website. To reach out to our team, visit our Contact page.