Welcome to Wampum Country!

I was first introduced to wampum in grade school when I was taught it was Indian money. Since then, I read about wampum in books like Neal Salisbury’s Manitou and Providence and William Cronon’s Changes in the Land, but it wasn’t until I delved deeply into the history of Munsee-Dutch relations in New Netherland that I confronted wampum directly.

I quickly came to appreciate that wampum had a rich and varied history (and learned that it wasn’t Indian money). So as I finished my first book, The Dutch-Munsee Encounter in America, I knew that my next book would be about wampum.

Fortune has favored me with a fellowship at the National Humanities Center, where I’m spending 2015-2016 writing a first draft on this important subject. Meanwhile, I’m continuing with my research, looking for a publisher, and writing this blog. Stay tuned for updates on my progress. I also plan on posting interesting tidbits related to my research and news about wampum–yes, wampum is in the news more than you’d think!