Indian Melodies was written while Thomas Commuck lived in Wisconsin. Commuck states that he authored the book; by this, he means that he both collected learned songs and wrote his own as well. While the majority of songs seem to be written by Commuck, some, such as the very first song, “Pequot,” have “Words by Dr. Watts” or another such suggestion. The songs themselves are both religious and richly expressive and their context consists of everyday life, hardships, harmony, and the connection one has with a higher power. No matter the context, the songs continually consist of a descriptive language of emotion or commentary on various experiences. Some of the most powerful songs are those including religious experience and natural imagery. The song, “Flathead” is able to represent behaviors and characteristics of the Flathead Indian Nation, while using the concept of a higher power, harmony, fellowship, and natural imagery. The mixture of all these things creates a noble representation of the Flathead people,

Blest are the sons of peace
Whose hearts and hopes are one
Whose kind designs to serve and please
Through all their actions run

Blessed is the pious house
Where zeal and friendship meet
Their songs of praise, their mingled vows,
Make their communions sweet

Thus on the heavenly hills
The saints are blest above
Where joy, like morning dew distils
And all the air is love (Commuck 10).

Commuck writes of their personal characters, how they spend time together, their belief in heaven, and importantly, their connection with nature. The fact that in the same stanza referencing the Flatheads’ beliefs, nature is entwined, exemplifies the fact that while Native Americans before and in Commuck’s time may have converted to Christianity, they have not lost their roots in the process. Everything here is positive and represents one Native American’s view, of a fellow Native people. In this way, Commuck not only uses Indian Melodies as a form of expression, he also uses it in a way that positively asserts Native Americans.  

Looking at Commuck’s Indian Melodies in comparison with a few others written from around the same time, to more modern collections, one is able to see what exactly makes Commuck’s book so important in the history of written music publications. In 1907, the first copy of The Indians’ Book was published. Written by Natalie Curtis, The Indians’ Book is a collection of songs, stories, and art by Native Americans. Many of the songs are written in the tribe’s original language-some with translations underneath. The focus of the collected songs has less to do with religion and context, and more to do with Curtis's own enjoyment in collecting songs from Native American people: “The unstudied song of primitive man is as soulful in its purpose as developed art, but its simple expression of far simpler things” (xxvi). This statement displays how, while Curtis sees the importance of preserving Native American songs, they were not considered equal to other “developed art” of her time.

In contrast to Curtis’s view, over 50 years prior Commuck wrote and published a collection of Native American songs and asserted himself as a man of purpose and intellect. This author appears as an individual who could hold his own in a white world. Curtis makes remarks such as, “Let us pause in the stress of our modern life to listen to the ancient lore of our own land” (xxix). In Indian Melodies, Commuck’s language is eloquent and displays how vocally aware and active Commuck is in the modern world; while The Indians’ Book, highlights creative expression, it does so without the assertion of equality. Curtis’s book is beneficial because it brings to light the talent and beauty of Native American artistic expression via songs and stories, but is still filtered through the eyes of a culture who still see Native Americans as being a race needing to catch up to modernity.

Music in America: An Anthology from the Landing of the Pilgrims to the Close of the Civil War. 1620-1865 was published in 1964 by W.W. Norton & Company. It is a collection of songs, and their histories in America. The first three chapters consist of “Psalmody in New England,” “First Instruction Books and Singing Schools,” and “Music of the Ephrata Cloister and the Moravians,” but the latter half of the book pertains to Commuck’s time. Chapter four is entitled “Native American Composers” yet not one of the composers listed is an actual Native American. Instead, they are men, at least second generation, of Europeans who happened to be physically born in America. Commuck and these American born composers have similarly named their songs based on people, places, and events. They also both write of religious experience and hope, but their differences lay in their context. Francis Hopkinson wrote the song, A Toast, in order to show respect for “George Washington, emerging as the military and political leader of our new nation” (Gleason, et al 97). All of the composers in Music in America write their songs based on the white man’s experience in their “new nation.”

Commuck makes the point that, “As the tunes in this book are the work of an Indian…the tunes therefore will be found to assume the names of noted Indian chiefs, Indian females, Indian names of places, &c. This has been done merely as a tribute of respect to the memory of some tribes that are now nearly if not quite extinct; also as a mark of courtesy to some tribes with whom the author is acquainted” (vi). Both the English-American born composers and Commuck write songs of hope, respect, and historical and religious significance, but men such as Hopkinson are celebrating their “new nation” while Commuck’s hymns are holding onto the existence of one that’s being threatened.

Collections of English-American music as well as Native American music have been written and published by white men and women from before Commuck’s time to today, but Indian Melodies has been a continual oversight. Commuck’s collection, authored by a Native American regarding Native Americans, asserted himself in a world dominated by English psalmody. In the midst of oppression and after years of colonization and Christianization, Commuck’s book displays how the oral tradition of songs and hymns asserts Native Americans as academic, creative and religious equals.

Works Cited

Brooks, Joanna. American Lazarus: Religion and the Rise of African-American and Native American Literatures. Oxford University Press, 2003.

Bross, Kristina, and Hilary E. Wyss. Early Native Literacies in New England: A Documentary and Critical Anthology. Univ of Massachusetts Press, 2008.

Commuck, Thomas, Thomas Hastings, and Samson Occom. Indian Melodies: By Thomas Commuck. Harmonized by Thomas Hastings. G. Lane & C.B. Tippett, 1845.

Contributors, See Notes Multiple. A Choice Collection of Hymns and Spiritual Songs; Intended for the Edification of Sincere Christians, of All Denominations. By Samson Occom, Minister of the Gospel. [Text]. Gale ECCO, Print Editions, 2010.

Curtis, Natalie. Indians’ Book. Dover Pub. Co., 1968.

Kellaway, William. The New England Company, 1649-1776: Missionary Society to the American Indians. Barnes & Noble, 1962.

Love, William DeLoss. Samson Occom and the Christian Indians of New England. Syracuse University Press, 1899.

Marrocco, William Thomas, and Harold Gleason. Music in America: An Anthology from the Landing of the Pilgrims to the Close of the Civil War, 1620-1865. W.W. Norton, 1964.

Moore, MariJo. Genocide of the Mind: New Native American Writing. Nation Books, 2003.

Spinney, Ann Morrison. Passamaquoddy Ceremonial Songs: Aesthetics and Survival (Native Americans of the Northeast: History, Culture, and the Contemporary). 1st ed. Univ. of Massachusetts Press, 2010.

Troutman, John W. Indian Blues: American Indians and the Politics of Music, 1879-1934. University of Oklahoma Press, 2012.

Indian Walls - Narragansett Tribal Stonemasons in New England. 2008.

“Brothertown Indians.” F576 W81 (January 1, 1998).

“Divine Hymns, or Spiritual Songs; for the Use of Religious Assemblies and Private Christians."

According to an editorial written by Princess Red Wing, the name The Narragansett Dawn was chosen at a tribal meeting in December 1934 in order to signify “the awakening after so long and black a night of being civilized” (“Our Purpose”). This quote begins to suggest the quietly subversive nature of the paper. The general tone of many of the articles is a sort of defiant and proud resistance to the dominant narratives about Indians in American culture at this time. Native people were often portrayed as savages who needed to be civilized by the stronger hand of white people, to be forcibly taught about Jesus, Shakespeare, and white bread in order to become worthwhile members of society. In response to this depiction of their people, Indians like the founders of the Narragansett Dawn worked to create an image of their communities as close-knit and tradition-based. Moreover, looking to the future, George D. Jordan insisted that, “to preserve the best that was and now is in this culture shall be the primary function of this organization” (“The American Indian”). The Narragansett Dawn was both a way for Red Wing and Hazard to do this in the present and a platform through which they could call upon other Native people and allies to do so in the future.

History

This sort of resistance to the hegemony of white American culture is perhaps explained by a consideration of the history of the Narragansett tribe. The Narragansett tribe was a prominent nation of Native people in Rhode Island and other parts of New England before the arrival of European settlers in the 1600’s. Their cultural values and way of life led them to resist the influence of English settlers in very “passive” ways. Unlike the Pequot nation, who challenged the English in direct combat, the Narragansett people rebelled against the English by going to other tribes and keeping them from signing treaties with the English (Boissevain). They also teamed up with the Dutch to resist the English in 1653.

Because of these trends in their history, the Narragansett nation become intermingled with many different bloodlines. For instance, Princess Red Wing, one of the founders of The Narragansett Dawn, was actually only half Narragansett; her mother was Wampanoag (Poon). Partially because of the ubiquity of this blood mingling, the Narragansett tribe was particularly susceptible to the trend of detribalization in the late 1800s. The General Allottment Act, passed in 1887, distributed land previously held by the tribe to settlers and forced many Narragansett people to leave Rhode Island. In addition, the state of Rhode Island claimed that the blood of the members of the Narragansett tribe was not pure enough for them to ever become federally recognized (Geake).

In 1934, just before the launch of the Narragansett Dawn, the United States federal government issued the Indian Reorganization Act, which allowed tribes to make claims to land and govern themselves. Since this seemed to reverse some of the effects of the General Allottment Act, the Narragansett Tribe began to believe that they could regain a sense of their own communal identity. Political activists from the Narragansett community spoke out in hopes of reawakening the spirit of their people, who had been so long oppressed and diminished. One such activist was Princess Red Wing, who held tribal events out of her home and initiated the publication of The Narragansett Dawn. In the editorials she wrote for the paper, she invoked the Narragansett people’s pride in response to governmental claims regarding their ancestry and purity. The Narragansett Dawn was therefore a manifestation of a mounting sense of community among the Narragansett people in the 1930’s, as well as a sort of throwback to the passive resistance the tribe championed in its earlier days.

Structure

The Narragansett Dawn was broken into multiple sections, which varied from issue to issue. There were many that were consistent, though. One such section was the Narragansett Tongue, which contained lessons on common vocabulary, such as the names of animals, plants, and types of buildings, in the Narragansett language. A total of thirteen lessons were produced. Another section was Genealogy, which traced the lineage, both paternal and maternal, of significant figures in the Narragansett community. The paper also contained a section that was first named Greetings From Friends and later changed to the Narragansett Mailbox. It was similar to a "letter to the editor" section and contained letters written to the newspaper by its readers, both Indian and non-Indian. The letters mostly served to praise the paper or the tribe, or to express solidarity with its aim of stirring up a sense of community among the Narragansett.

The paper also featured identity sections, which described Narragansett items and values that displayed their cultural identity. They appear with varying titles pertaining to the topic, such as "Narragansett Fires" and "Pipe of Peace." There was also a section called Milestones that contained small bits of news, such as the announcement of births, deaths, weddings, and notable visits, that occurred in and around the Narragansett reservation in Rhode Island. There was also a news section called Sunrise News that was written for each issue by the Keeper of Records, a woman named Marion W. Brown. This section contained information on small, notable things that had taken place in the Narragansett community in each respective month. The paper also printed short articles on history, offering a Narragansett perspective on historical events such as the first Thanksgiving and King Phillip’s War.

There was also a decent amount of origin Indian poetry published in The Narragansett Dawn. These poems were usually quite short and often dealt with themes related to Narragansett culture and values, religion, and nature. An excerpt from one poem: "All that eye and heart could own / Rich domains to roam at will / When the morning sun went down / See him on his eastern hill” (“The Indian”). This poem, written by a poet called Flying Squirrel, presents an image of pre-colonial Narragansett life as idyllic and profoundly in touch with the natural world. Yet it also laments that this lifestyle is no longer possible after the past three hundred years of history: “Oh his Golden Age hath vanished / Like the moonlight from the hill” (“The Indian”). It therefore presents a less optimistic tone than much of the rest of The Narragansett Dawn, which is focused on the idea of reestablishing a sense of Narragansett identity and preserving the culture for posterity.

Works Cited

"The American Indian." The Narragansett Dawn. Feb 1936. Retrieved 22 April 2013.

Boissevain, Ethel. "Narragansett Survival: A Study of Group Persistence Through Adapted Traits". Ethnohistory 6 (4): 347. Retrieved 15 April 2013.

Geake, Robert A. (2011). A History of the Narragansett Tribe of Rhode Island: Keepers of the Bay. Charleston, SC: The History Press. pp. 126–128.

"The Indian". The Narragansett Dawn. Aug 1936. Retrieved 5 April 2013.

"Our Purpose". The Narragansett Dawn. Sept. 1936. Retrieved 5 April 2013.

Poon, Chris (12 Jul 2003). "Princess Red Wing: Preserver of Native American Traditions". Providence Journal.

Redwing, Princess and Ernest Hazard. “The Narragansett Dawn". URI Digital Commons. Retrieved 2 April 2013.

Native American Education

The museum has helped her with many of her personal endeavors, including the publishing of her essay in the book The Pursuit of Happiness: An Indigenous View, the Narragansett People Speak in 2005 as well as serving as the site for her school. Spears is a strong advocate for integrating more Native history and experiential learning into school curricula, as well as standing up for Native American children in the public school systems. As a child, Spears struggled to reach the caliber of her first grade classmates in her public school class in rural Rhode Island. She reflects on the experience, stating that “it was the perfect story of the low expectations white teachers have for Native American children” (Coeyman).

In an unfortunate sense of déjà vu, Spears watched her eldest son struggle through first and second grade. This is when she decided to take some action; the discrimination of, and lack of respect for, Native children had gone on too long. Because of this, in 2003, Lorèn founded the Nuweetooun-meaning "our home"- School. This was a K-8th grade day school for Native American children (but also open to the public), located on the museum site, that used a curriculum based in Native American tradition and culture as well as standard academic subjects like math, literature and science. Her mission for the school was laid out in her essay featured in The Pursuit of Happiness:

We are committed to an experiential, integrated and collaborative learning environment in which we strive to develop well-rounded, enthusiastic and self-motivated learners. They experience education that embraces their Learning styles, honors their multiple intelligences, and enriches their educational, social spiritual and cultural development.

Lorèn has achieved this idea of experiential learning in various ways including having her students learn to work with and appreciate nature by trekking through a nearby forest to identify various trees, animal tracks and vegetation, making a gallon of maple syrup from 40 gallons of maple sap and travelling to Bluff Point State Park in Groton, CT to receive a hands-on lesson on “how archaeologists use fine-mesh screens and water to recover small-scale remains” (Silliman). She has also taught her students about the importance of the Three Sisters, which consist of corn, beans and squash, to the Narragansett people and many other Native American tribes. Each student at the Nuweetooun School, therefore, created either a picture or a poem about the Three Sisters, which were inspired by the Three Sisters Garden located on the grounds of the Tomaquag Indian Memorial Museum. These depictions were collected and composed into a book, The Three Sisters: Pictures and Poems. The proceeds from selling this book were incorporated back into funding the school.

Narragansett People and Nature

In another endeavor sponsored and published by the museum, Lorèn, her mother Dawn Dove, her daughter Laurel and her grandmother Eleanor Spears Dove collaborated with other family members, tribe members and artist Holly Ewald to create “an environmentally-themed collage art book that presents Indigenous perspectives on the history of the Mashapaug Pond, the last remaining natural freshwater body in Providence, Rhode Island” (Farris). At one time in the history of the Narragansett People, the pond served as a venue for the young people to learn how to fish, swim and navigate canoes; it was also a very important factor in the physical and psycho-spiritual well being of the Narragansett community (Farris). Lorèn further explores the importance of nature in her poem “Roaring Brook,” which has yet to be published:

Every spring the brook’s water was glistening and full
Roaring from Arcadia, over falls and rocks;
We swam all summer in the pool
We thought it was deep
Our memories fun-filled and cool

Like the Mashapaug Pond, this brook served as a place for young Narragansett people to explore. Unfortunately, due to more than a century of industrial pollution and surface water runoff, the Mashapaug Pond can no longer contribute to the lives of the Narragansett community. However, Lorèn further describes in “Roaring Brook” how her community worked hard to preserve these important natural landmarks and the significance of continuing the preservation:

Grandfather, Chief Roaring Bull,
Always kept the brook clean…
…So long as we heed nature’s call:
Care for Mother Earth and her creatures
So that Roaring Brook can be enjoyed by all

In addition to heeding nature’s call, Lorèn strived to enrich her students with the culture in which they live, and grew up. As a result, every day at the Nuweetooun School begins with a Friendship Circle, a tradition of Narragansett people. Other cultural classroom activities include beadwork, finger weaving, basketry and the use of some Narragansett words (Hopkins).

Struggles and Achievements

Unfortunately, the Nuweetooun School was faced with a series of crises from 2009-2010. In 2009, the water pipes in the school building were discovered to have traces of metal in them, thus making the water unsafe to drink. Since the school is a non-profit organization, they relied on grants and fundraising to fund their school. With the help of this fundraising, the school was able to fix the plumbing issues in July 2009 (Thanks). The following year, the school was faced with more problems. In March 2010, the Supreme Court made a ruling that removed 31 acres of land out of trust from the Narragansett reservation in Charlestown. Because the tribe had much less land for money-making ventures, they had less money to provide to the school. In addition, Rhode Island was hit with devastating floods, which forced the school to go on hiatus, where it remains today (Davis). In light of these events, in 2010 Spears was also chosen as one of eleven Extraordinary Women honorees for Rhode Island. This award exemplifies the very nature of Lorèn Spears—extraordinary. In the words of Narragansett Chief Sachem Matthew Thomas, the Narragansett People “…support her in all she is doing and seeking to accomplish. She is an exceptional woman…” (Rovetti).

References

Coeyman, Marjorie (29 July 2003). "The school that Loren built; Native American children lag behind other minorities in academic achievement. One Rhode Island woman wants to change that." The Christian Science Monitor.

Davis, Paul (Mar. 2009). "U.S. Supreme Court ruling latest setback for Indians". The Providence Journal.

Farris, Phoebe (September 2012). "Through Our Eyes: An Indigenous View of Mashapaug Pond". Cultural Survival Quarterly. Retrieved 7 April 2013.

Hopkins, John Christian. "Nuweetooun - Our Home - School". News from Indian Country.

Rovetti, Leslie (29 March 2010). "It's official: Narragansett educator, curator Loren Spears is extraordinary". Westerly Sun. Retrieved 6 April 2013.

Spears, Cassius, Jr., comp. The Three Sisters: Pictures and Poems. Exeter: Tomaquag Indian Memorial Museum/ Nuweetooun School, 2009. Print.

Spears, Loren (2005). The Pursuit of Happiness: An Indigenous View of Education. Exeter, RI: Tomaquag Indian Memorial Museum. pp. xx.

"Thanks to You, WE REACHED OUR GOAL!" Tomaquag Indian Memorial Museum and Nuweetooun School. Nuweetooun School, 2 June 2009. Web. 4 Apr. 2013.

Through Our Eyes: An Indigenous View of Mashapaug Pond. Exeter, RI: Tomaquag Indian Memorial Museum. 2012. pp. xx.

Journalism Endeavors

Hopkins spent time as a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist for the Gannett News Service, and also has written for USA Today, The News-Press, The Pequot Times, The Westerly Sun, Indian Country Today Media Network, News from Indian Country and Native Peoples Magazine. His work has received recognition from the Gannett Awards and the Native American Journalists Association (NAJA) Awards. In 2003, he became the first member of the NAJA to receive awards in four different writing categories during the same year (news, features, sports and columns).

From an early age, Hopkins knew exactly what he wanted to do and made it happen.

“I’ve never wanted to do anything other than write,” Hopkins said in an interview. “Through journalism I saw a chance to write, tell stories of interesting people and things and get paid for it!”

From Journalist to Author

The field of journalism has brought Hopkins from Rhode Island to Massachusetts, New York, Florida, and now Arizona. While he has been in the reporting business for twenty-plus years, he also delved into writing fiction novels over the past decade.

Hopkins has published five books: Carlomagno in 2003, Nacogdoches in 2004, The Pirate Prince Carlomagno in 2011, Twilight of the Gods in 2011, and Rhyme or Reason: Narragansett Poetry in 2012.

Hopkins doesn’t shy away from trying out different genres, whether it be historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction, or even poetry.

“I can’t sleep at night because my mind won’t turn off; I spend time thinking of things to write about, genres I want to try,” said Hopkins. “I feel some need to create.”

His first book, Carlomagno, is based off King Philip’s War, fictionally elaborating on the story of King Philip’s captured son, whom he names “Carlomagno.” Hopkins’s long love of westerns is apparent in Nacogdoches, which follows “The Rango Kid,” as he impersonates a sheriff and finds himself forced to stand up to a criminal. The Pirate Prince of Carlomagno continues to tell a story of a Young Native American’s struggles to elude slavery. In Twilight of the Gods, Hopkins explores the science fiction genre by writing about the supernatural coming to life, based off the Mayan calendar’s predictions. Most recently, Hopkins published Rhyme or Reason: Narragansett Poetry, which touches on Narragansett tribal history.

“I definitely enjoy mixing real history with fiction, so that not only can I tell a story, but maybe help the reader to learn something they didn’t know,” said Hopkins. “By the way, I am related to the main character in Carlomagno.”

Descent

Hopkins is related to the Wampanoag tribe and is of kin to Quadequina — known famously for introducing popcorn to the Pilgrims at the First Thanksgiving. In addition, Hopkins is of King Ninigret descent — the last hereditary royal family of the Narragansett Native Americans in Rhode Island. Hopkins himself served as a Narragansett Tribal Council member from 1994 to 1996.

Despite his relation to some historically renowned Native Americans, Hopkins doesn’t want to be known as just another Native American writer. He wants to be known as a writer.

“I don’t want to be limited,” he said. “I’ve worked at newspapers where I was the 'Indian' writer, go do the pow wow stories, write about casino plans. I am more than that. I will not be put in a box and be defined by someone else.”

Writing Style

Between his novels, poetry and journalism, Hopkins’s writing style varies drastically. But when he is wearing his nationally syndicated columnist hat, Hopkins greets his readers with a particularly humorous tone.

“I write for an audience,” said Hopkins. “I prefer humor because there is too much sadness in the news and I want to brighten someone’s day with an unexpected chuckle or smile. I also think it’s more challenging to be funny as writer. Everyone understands sadness and pain, but to make someone laugh is special — because people have different senses of humor.”

The following depicts his lighthearted voice as a columnist:

I never planned to be a failed journalist or a hack writer. Seriously, in my youth, I had big plans that included wealth, women and worldwide fame.

Now I’d settle for a Twinkie and a Diet Coke.

I’m not one of those quacks that hope to better his or her life by climbing Mount Everest or learning to make origami swans. Instead, I am devoted to Self-Hypnotic Introspection Therapy. (You figure out the acronym for that). (”My Past Lives Relived for You,” Indian Country Today Media Network)

As his writing style may suggest, Hopkins has fun with all the day-to-day responsibilities of being a writer. He is currently working on a couple projects, and that’s the way he likes it. One of his projects is a western that takes place in an Arizona ghost town; the other is a fantasy about wizards and warriors.

Again, he has fun with it.

“I’ve never been intimidated by a blank page and a deadline. I see it as a challenge, a test,” Hopkins said. “And usually I have far more to say than I can fit on a blank page. Also, it’s my way of gaining immortality. I’ll be gone some day, but my words will live on.”

References

Sonja Horoshko. “Hopkins’ ‘Carlomagno’ Imagines the Life of a Native American Pirate.” Four Corners Free Press. (Aug. 2011).

Reid Wright. “‘Twilight of the Gods.’” The Cortez Journal. (March 2012).

“Native American Authors.” Internet Public Library. (2012).

“Narragansett Indian Tribe.” Official Tribal Website. Anthony Arusso. “A writing life for Hopkins.” Southern Rhode Island Newspapers. (Dec. 2011).

John Christian Hopkins. “Honesty and Crimes: The Good, the Bad, the Ugly.” Indian Country Today Media Network. (Feb. 2013).

John Christian Hopkins. “My Past Lives Relived for You.” Indian Country Today Media Network. (March 2013).

John Christian Hopkins. “Peace Party Comics features Native American warriors as the heroes.” Pequot Times. (May 2002).

Hopkins, John Christian. Carlomagno. New York: IUniverse, 2003. Print.

Hopkins, John Christian. Nacogdoches. N.p.: Publish America, 2004. Print.

Hopkins, John Christian. The Pirate Prince Carlomagno. Franklin Park, NJ: Wampum, 2011. Print.

Hopkins, John Christian. Rhyme or Reason: Narragansett Poetry. Greenfield, MA: Blue Hand, 2012. Print.

Hopkins, John Christian. Twilight of the Gods. Greenfield, MA: Blue Hand, 2011. Print.

“Native American Journalists Association.” Official Website.

“Author John Christian Hopkins.” Personal Blog.

“John Christian Hopkins Fan Page.” Facebook.