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by Rosalyn Howard Ph. D. (Author)
This is one of few publications focusing on the people of St. David's Island - a community in Bermuda that developed a unique and little known culture. In this book, the St. David's Islanders reveal previously unrecorded personal stories about their mixed ethnic heritage, what it was like growing up on a self-described idyllic and isolated island, and about their recent reconnection with long lost Native American relatives from the USA. The St. David's Islanders were a mystery to many other Bermudians for a number of reasons: their geographic isolation; strong sense of community and distrust of outsiders; dietary habits, eating 'strange' foods; speaking with a 'funny' accent; and their physical appearance that was very different from most other Bermudians. They were often taunted by outsiders and called "Mohawks" because of their mixed ancestry that includes Native Americans, Africans, and Europeans. St. David's Islanders recollect their stories in interviews with the author, a cultural anthropologist. They reveal how an important part of their oral history that was silenced for generations has become a vocal and passionate part of their existence over the past two decades. That passion is the search for details about their Native American heritage, which they are seeking to accomplish by reconnecting with their long lost relatives, and conducting research in the archives and other repositories for documents that might shed light on their ancestry. The St. David's Islanders and other Bermudians with Native American ancestry formed an organization to plan a "Reconnection" event that would celebrate their Native American ancestry and re-establish a bond with their relatives from various North American tribal nations including: the Mashantucket Pequot, Narragansett, Mashpee Wampanoag, Cherokee, Nipmuc, and others. In 2002, the first Reconnection Festival and Powwow was held on St. David's Island. Since their Reconnection, they have discovered remarkable similarities in some of their cultural practices, maritime skills, and physical resemblances. In "Recollection and Reconnection," you will hear the voices of the St. David's Islanders, their North American Native relatives, and Bermudian government officials. In addition to the interviews, there are many photographs of the interviewees and of participants in the Bermuda and US Powwows.
Author Biography
Rosalyn Howard, Ph.D. is a cultural anthropologist and former Associate Professor of Anthropology and Director of the North American Indian Studies Program at the University of Central Florida (Orlando, Florida). She specializes in Cultural Anthropology research and her primary area of interest is the study of Africa and the African Diaspora with a focus on the interrelationships formed by African and Native American peoples in the Americas and the Caribbean. During her academic career, Dr. Howard conducted extensive research among mixed Native-African populations in Florida, The Bahamas and Bermuda, and additional Cultural Anthropological research in several countries of the Caribbean and Africa. Among her publications is the book entitled 'Black Seminoles in the Bahamas." She remains an active researcher, although retired from academe, as a team member of a Public Anthropology research project entitled "Looking for Angola." Angola was an early nineteenth century Florida maroon community formerly located near present-day Sarasota, Florida.
