Rappahannocks Hold Annual Pow Wow

The Rappahannocks, officially recognized as one of the historic tribes of Virginia, hosted their 13th annual Pow Wow and Harvest Festival at their cultural center in Indian Neck on Saturday.

The event is one way the tribe meets its mission "to preserve Rappahannock history and traditions while elevating the cultural, social, economic and spiritual level of its community."  The festival included dancing, music, crafts and food.

The Rappahannocks were dominant in the Rappahannock River Valley in 1607.  They lived in 15 villages along the banks of the river that bears their name.  It was in present day Warsaw, Virginia, where John Smith first met them in 1608.

In the early 1700s, the tribe was moved to what is now Indian Neck, which is the last known reservation of the Rappahannock people. Descendants have occupied that land to the present day.