Meet Native America: Wayne Mackanear Brown, Principal Chief of the Meherrin Nation

"In the interview series Meet Native America, the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian invites tribal leaders, cultural figures, and other interesting and accomplished Native individuals to introduce themselves and say a little about their lives and work. Together, their responses illustrate the diversity of the indigenous communities of the Western Hemisphere, as well as their shared concerns, and offer insights beyond what’s in the news to the ideas and experiences of Native peoples today." 
-Dennis Zotigh, NMAI 

Principal Chief Wayne Mackanear Brown on Meherrin tribal land.
The three figures at the lower edge of the chief's regalia
represent the Tuscarora, Meherrin, and Nottoway peoples
- nations of the Southern Iroquois Confederacy.
Image Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian's Blog.

"Where is the Meherrin Nation located?
Our tribal office is in Ahoskie, North Carolina—near Potecasi Creek in Hertford County.

Where were the Meherrin people originally from?
According to Mohawk history, approximately 2,000 years ago the Haudenosaunee lived in the Great Plains alongside the great river called the Mississippi. Their closest friends and allies were the Pawnee Nation. For unknown reasons all the Haudenosaunee Nations, including the Meherrin, left and started a migration up the Ohio River Trail towards the Great Lakes. The Tuscarora, Meherrin, andNottoway split off from their brothers and traveled down the Kanawha River. The Meherrin settled in what is now Emporia, Virginia."

To read the full interview, click here.

The Meherrin Nation's website.