Life in the Eastern Woodlands

Gather at the Putnam History Museum to learn about Indigenous daily life as it was before permanent European settlement. Handle key artifacts such as bark baskets, cups, bowls, stone axes, spoons, bows and arrows, animal pelts, and leather, and discover the techniques archaeologists, historians and anthropologists use to merge their knowledge into an accurate picture of the past.

Please register for all participants, including children.

Drew Shuptar-Rayvis (Pekatawas MakataweU “Black Corn”) holds a cum laude Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Sociology from Western Connecticut State University and a Certificate Degree in Archaeology from Norwalk Community College. A true American of the mid-Atlantic region, his family includes Indigenous Pocomoke heritage, Pennsylvania Dutch, Welsh, Swiss, English, Scots-Irish, Boyko Ukrainian and Ashkanazi/ Sephardic Jewish, he honors all of his ancestors as a practicing living historian and regularly participates in colonial era reenactments, interpretations and public educational events.

He works diligently in the research and preservation of the Eastern Woodland languages, particularly Renape, southern Unami and Nanticoke and is educated in the many European languages at use in the Colonial Period. He was the first garden manager of Western Connecticut State University’s Permaculture Garden, and practices Native horticulture. In July 2021, Drew was elected by his Paramount Chief Norris Howard Senior and Council member Norris Howard Junior as Cultural Ambassador of the Pocomoke Indian Nation of Maryland. In June of 2023, Drew was hired as a contractual research and preservation specialist with Maryland State Archives where he works to record oral histories, lifeways and traditions of Marylands eastern shore tribal communities. Drew also serves as the algonkian historical consultant for the New Amsterdam History Center of NYC where he writes numerous articles on 17th century algonkian culture.