The Nanticoke Indian Association is a group of
Nanticoke Nanticoke may refer to:
* Nanticoke people in Delaware, United States
* Nanticoke language, an Algonquian language
* Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape, a state-recognized tribe in New Jersey
Place names Canada
* Nanticoke, Ontario
** Nanticoke Generating S ...
who have their headquarters in
Millsboro, Delaware
Millsboro is a town in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. Millsboro is part of the Salisbury metropolitan area.
History
Millsboro's earliest European settlers were of English family origin; though most were second generation colonists who s ...
. They were recognized as a
Native American tribe by the state of Delaware in 1922. The Nanticoke are one of few state-recognized Native American groups in Delaware.
In 2002 Kenneth S. "Red Deer" Clark Sr. (1930-2015), the head chief of the association, resigned in protest because of actions by other members. He felt they were shortsighted and not beneficial to all members. One of the main issues was over how large the annual
pow-wow
A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native American and First Nations
First Nations or first peoples may refer to:
* Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an ...
should be and how much association members should participate in preparations for the pow-wow.
Formation of the Incorporated Body
In 1875, the state of
Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
passed "An Act To Tax Colored Persons For The Support Of Their Schools". At this time, the Nanticokes were not allowed to form a school for members of their own community, and had to pay taxes for schools that their children did not attend. Because of this, members of the Nanticoke community began to form what would soon be called the Incorporated Body. "This was a non tribal group of thirty-one Indian descendants who had volunteered to fight for the common cause and to pool their funds to support separate schools for their children". On March 10th, 1881, the Incorporated Body was recognized by the state of Delaware. Through this, the Nanticokes were legally considered a third racial group (in the state of Delaware) and were allowed to erect
two schools for Nanticoke children aged seven through twenty one. This event would spark the official formation of the Nanticoke Indian Association in 1922.
References
Further reading
*Waldman, Carl. ''Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes''. (New York: Checkmark Books, 2006) p. 183.
External links
*http://www.nanticokeindians.org/
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Nanticoke tribe
1922 establishments in Delaware
Organizations established in 1922
State-recognized tribes in the United States