Paul Cuffe, a Brief Biography

Please visit www.PaulCuffe.org to learn more   Paul Cuffe was born on Cuttyhunk Island, at the west end of the Elizabeth Islands chain in Massachusetts, on January 17, 1759. He was the seventh child and fourth son of Cuff Slocum, an emancipated slave from West Africa, and Ruth Moses, a Native American woman from Cape […]

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Native Americans in 19th-century Westport

“Like the fleeting years and days, Like all things that soon decay, Pass the Indian tribes away.”  (Daniel Ricketson, History of New Bedford, 1858) This lamentation was written by Daniel Ricketson, local historian, in 1858. Was Ricketson unaware of the many Native Americans living at the time in Dartmouth, whose ancestors had survived war and […]

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The Consolidation of Westport Schools

The following paper was written by Peter Innes following his internship at Westport Historical Society, during the spring semester 2009.  During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, tremendous change occurred within the Westport Public School system. This change occurred gradually and not without opposition, but ultimately was the result of not only a better […]

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WESTPORT POLISH FARM FAMILIES 1915 TO 1950

Polish Families of Westport Get Together August 6, 2022   Research compiled by Russell T. Hart PART 1 Polish Families of Westport, Massachusetts from Westport Historical Society on Vimeo. PART 2 Polish Families of Westport, Massachusetts research by Russell Hart, presented at the Westport History Group, 2008 The history of the Polish families in Westport […]

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Wampanoag Families of Westport by R. Andrew Pierce

Native Americans of Dartmouth and Westport A Presentation by R. Andrew Pierce Westport Historical Society January 13, 2018 Select Bibliography Akin, Benjamin of Dartmouth, Mass. Account Book. Ms 204, Dubois Library, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Mass. Boston Evening Post, 26 May 1738, story about Dartmouth squaw killing her infant daughter, she was committed to Bristol […]

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Captain Pardon Cook of Westport

The best-known citizen of Westport is Paul Cuffe, a master mariner with African and Indian roots who rose to prominence as a captain, ship-builder, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and advocate for civil rights and school integration. Less well known is Pardon Cook, also an accomplished master mariner from Westport, who commanded more whaling voyages than any other […]

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