Tell me more about Abenaki Trails.
This project is to help educate the general public and share a cultural exchange with the Abenaki people, Past and Present. We welcome you on our journey together.
We started July 21, 2020. The goal of this project is to visibly honor and share a more inclusive history of the Abenaki people, to highlight historical Abenaki sites, and to accentuate the positive influences we have had with Colonial America and the towns we continue to live in today.
We will be working with each town and each town's historical society, independently, to highlight sites in their town and to erect and / or install monuments and / or signage to educate visitors about the Abenaki people and their influence on the area. The project will kick off in Contoocook / Hopkinton, NH and will be working with some of the best people in the fields of archaeology, anthropology, and historical societies.
From there, we will continue to work with various other towns to install similar educational sites promoting awareness and appreciation of Abenaki History. These sites will form an "Abenaki Trail," where people can travel from town-to-town learning about our great history and the impact we continue to have on communities today as a living and thriving culture.
For more information, visit Abenaki Trails on the main tribal website.
We started July 21, 2020. The goal of this project is to visibly honor and share a more inclusive history of the Abenaki people, to highlight historical Abenaki sites, and to accentuate the positive influences we have had with Colonial America and the towns we continue to live in today.
We will be working with each town and each town's historical society, independently, to highlight sites in their town and to erect and / or install monuments and / or signage to educate visitors about the Abenaki people and their influence on the area. The project will kick off in Contoocook / Hopkinton, NH and will be working with some of the best people in the fields of archaeology, anthropology, and historical societies.
From there, we will continue to work with various other towns to install similar educational sites promoting awareness and appreciation of Abenaki History. These sites will form an "Abenaki Trail," where people can travel from town-to-town learning about our great history and the impact we continue to have on communities today as a living and thriving culture.
For more information, visit Abenaki Trails on the main tribal website.
What is the "Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation"?
We are a local family band of Abenaki researching the areas our families have lived in for centuries. 10 years ago, the state of Vermont provided a path to recognition for Abenaki Bands. The state of New Hampshire has not yet provided that path to Abenaki bands. So, we as a family band, realized our kinship to citizens of the Nulhegan Band and decided to enroll with that Band, in order to share the rights and responsibilities of a recognized tribe.
To us, as Abenaki, the river is a highway through our traditional homeland, not a political boundary.
To us, as Abenaki, the river is a highway through our traditional homeland, not a political boundary.
Where is the "Abenaki Trail"?
The "trail" part means that you can go from one site to another, by car, and see the sites. Or you will be able to one day.
The original Abenaki foot paths became the early roads and most of them are still in use today. So, historical sites we find follow local roads - and can be driven to, for the most part.
But now we are at that place of deciding how much traffic we want to send to sites. Some are on private land. Some are sacred sites, like the medicine water. A year and a half in and we have yet to erect a single sign, lol. But we are working on it.
The original Abenaki foot paths became the early roads and most of them are still in use today. So, historical sites we find follow local roads - and can be driven to, for the most part.
But now we are at that place of deciding how much traffic we want to send to sites. Some are on private land. Some are sacred sites, like the medicine water. A year and a half in and we have yet to erect a single sign, lol. But we are working on it.
Can you help with my town?
We are methodically working in specific areas within the Contoocook to Sunapee to Monadnock region.
What's this I've heard about "Abenaki Helping Abenaki"?
Abenaki Helping Abenaki, also known as AHA, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with the mission to preserve the culture, community awareness, charitable endeavors, and outreach of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki People, commonly referred to as the "Nulhegan Band."
Abenaki Helping Abenaki, or AHA:
For more information or to donate, please visit AHA, or Abenaki Helping Abenaki, on our tribal website. Abenaki Helping Abenaki, Inc. is now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and each donation is tax deductible.
Abenaki Helping Abenaki, or AHA:
- Provides various educational resources to meet the unique educational and culturally related academic needs of the Nulhegan Band and other Native American students.
- Supplies community members with healthy food and necessary essentials in times of need.
- Commits to educating Nulhegan Band citizens and other Native Americans on traditional, organic, agriculture, and sustainable living.
For more information or to donate, please visit AHA, or Abenaki Helping Abenaki, on our tribal website. Abenaki Helping Abenaki, Inc. is now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and each donation is tax deductible.
How can I donate?
Your donation goes directly towards supporting our AHA, or Abenaki Helping Abenaki, Inc. AHA is now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so your donation is tax-deductible.
100% of your donation(s) directly support AHA and provide community-based support, including social, economic, cultural, and health needs, for the Abenaki and American Indian communities.
100% of your donation(s) directly support AHA and provide community-based support, including social, economic, cultural, and health needs, for the Abenaki and American Indian communities.
To receive your tax deductible form, please wait a moment after you click the "Donate" button to download the necessary form for tax purposes. Thank you.
When are your next events?
All of our upcoming events are posted on our Facebook page, which are automatically updated on our new events calendar, and now up on our website. View all current and upcoming Nulhegan events on our calendar.
What can I do to help?
If you'd like to volunteer or discover other ways to get the word out about the Abenaki tribe, visit our main volunteer page.
Describe the process of becoming a tribal member. Who's eligible?
For complete information about enrollment and application forms, tribal cards, genealogy, and more, visit our main tribal website at www.AbenakiTribe.org.
What are your traditions?
We continue the traditions of basketmaking, pottery, canoe making, and more. We also hold an annual Snow Snake Games event during the winter that celebrates games, among many other traditions.
Here are a few of our traditional games:
Read more about these traditional games here.
Here are a few of our traditional games:
- Birchbark and Triangle
- Bowl and Dice Game, or Gagwenigan
- Bundle and Pin, or Adowiz
- Snow Snake, or Psôn Skoks
Read more about these traditional games here.
Tell me more about the seed program.
"The Abenaki Nation has partnered with NOFA-VT [Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont] and the Vermont Farm to Plate Network’s “Rooted in Vermont” project. That provides indigenous seeds to gardeners, homesteaders and farmers around Vermont who are dedicating land to grow and harvest food for Abenaki citizens." Learn more and watch a video of Chief Don Stevens discussing the seed program in an interview with WCAX-3 TV.
We're also working with the Kearsarge Food Hub in Bradford, New Hampshire for native seed distribution.
We're also working with the Kearsarge Food Hub in Bradford, New Hampshire for native seed distribution.
Read More or Watch Videos About Abenaki in the News
How can I contact you?
There are a few different ways you can contact us. We're responsive on Facebook Messenger, so visit our Facebook page and send us a message. We usually respond same day. For questions about the Food Shelf, you may email Darryl.
“Nulhegan’s Abenaki Trails Project will serve as a cultural awakening that will remove any doubt as to the first inhabitants of N’Dakinna, our home land.” -Darryl A. Peasley, Contoocook native, tribal member of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki, and an original member of the New Hampshire Commission on Native American Affairs
