Oct 15: Southampton Historic Museum

Life on the East End
by Darren de Silva

During this trip we visited the Southampton Historical Museum where we learned about the Rogers Mansion Property. We learned about daily life of settlers on Long Island and Southampton specifically. Most of the house was divided based on the adults or heads of the households being on the second floor and the slaves, servants, or children on the top floor or attic. In addition to where in the house everyone stayed, the picture below shows a living area on the second floor where most women would sew or work during the day. It was a good place to work since the sun would shine through the glass making the room warm and bright. Also, while their husbands were gone they could keep all of their items in the desk that can be placed in the area.

Image 1: The houses were built to use the environment to their favor. The window shown here was placed so the sun would shine through it giving light and warmth for the house during the winter.

In addition to the museum, we visited Agawam Pond which is across the street from the museum. We learned how although it is a brackish pond, there isn’t a lot of flushing occurring and since it is surrounded by buildings and nearby houses it is very susceptible to eutrophication. Due to this eutrophication many algal blooms occur that end up causing hypoxia in the pond and mass fish kills because of the lack of oxygen in the water. Although the marine life can at times have a hard time thriving in the pond, there are many ducks and other local organisms that use this pond to their advantage in reference to food and water.

Image 2: This is an image of the largest room in the house which includes a dining table and fireplace. This area was used to entertain people and related events.

A Tour of the Rogers Mansion circa the 1920s
by Michelle Barbosa

The main structure on the Southampton Historical Museum grounds is the Rogers Mansion; purchased in 1648 by William Rogers, the Rogers Mansion is an impressive home that was a central structure in Southampton in the 17th century. In 1899, the home was purchased by Samuel Longstreth Parrish and his wife, Clara Parrish. Today, the Southampton Historical Museum commemorates the home as it would have looked in the 1920s when the Parrish family resided in the mansion. The opulent decor in the home reflects the affluent lifestyle of the family living in the home at the time

The first room guests would enter in the Rogers Mansion would be the formal dining room where they could dine on small treats and fresh fruit while catching up with the Parrish family. The dining room was likely a central part of the home in the 1920s and was finely decorated to reflect the Parrish’s opulent lifestyle. The room was full of lavish furniture, finely crafted area rugs, exquisite china, and, interestingly, birds which had been preserved through the art of taxidermy. The dining room would have been the heart of the home when the Parrish family resided there and the ornate décor would have acted to give guests an excellent first impression.

In a wing off of the first floor of the home was a room named the Music Room. During the day, the large room fills with sunlight creating a warm and inspiring space in which the family and guests could discuss the arts and music and have intellectual conversations. Within the room, there are plenty of musical instruments including a large, grand piano and a music player (pictured above on the left). One interesting piece found in the Music Room was Parrish's medallion collection (pictured above on the right). Medallions were plaster copies of medals that were collected along Samuel Parrish’s travels from the 19th and 20th century. The medallions likely date back to the 16th or 17th century and the collection of such items is similar to modern coin collecting. One can almost picture Samuel Parrish entertaining guests in the music room and telling stories about his travels when he collected the medallions.

At night, after a long day spent listening to music or engaging in intellectual conversations, the Parrish family would retire to the second floor to get some rest. Clara Parrish's bedroom was decorated like it would have looked in the 1920s; the room has a light and airy feel about it which set the tone for a relaxing escape from everyday life. The room was decorated with delicate linens, and featured photographs of family and friends, art pieces crafted with preserved butterflies, ornate hat pins, hair combs, and perfume. The feminine retreat of the room in the Rogers Mansion likely reflects a desire to craft a space that was radically different from Clara’s apartment in New York City.

A door off of Clara Parrish's bedroom led to a dressing room which was more of an experience than a room in which one got dressed. Like her bedroom, Clara decorated the dressing room with light and feminine decor including an upholstered chaise lounge, an ornately painted vanity and chair, an elaborate rug, and a screen behind which Clara could get dressed. Many of the dresses hanging in the dressing room were intricately designed and reflect the clothing style of affluent women in the 1920s.

Taking a walk through the Rogers Mansion is an excellent way to be transported to the Roaring ‘20s and feel as though one is connected to that decade in Southampton’s history.

Is Shinnecock Tribal Culture Truly Shinnecock?
by Jade Blennau

Today, Southampton is viewed as an upperclass area with a mix of residential homes, boutique shopping spots and waterfront property. The history of this beautiful land goes back 13,000 years ago when paleo-indians first inhabited Long Island. The Shinnecock tribe then occupied this land until it had contact with the european settler. Culture of this tribal nation changed and adapted with the changing times.

In order to become a federally recognized Native Tribe a group such as the Shinnecock needed to display and prove how their culture is unique from other natives. Here, culture is defined as a group’s customs, way of life and traditions. In order for the tribe to prove this uniqueness, they used the land that was occupied by their ancestors for thousands of years in Southampton. Reservation areas were limited in space and were subject to change at times due to historical conflict.

Although the reservation proved a unique location for these tribal people, spelling out a historically accurate culture was more difficult. Like most Algonquin tribal nations, the history and cultural practices of the Shinnecock has been passed down through storytelling. This custom of keeping oral history does not make for the most accurate recollections. Over time, stories are misinterpreted, change and are lost completely. Scholars and historians use the term, “Reading against the grain” when studying an oral history society and this means the validity of information is questioned until ties and parallels can be made in regards to other stories/ documents/ artifacts. This limits the historical proof of true Shinnecock culture.

Another aspect of Shinnecock history that makes defining a true culture difficult is the traces of other cultures they have adapted and blended with. Over time the Shinnecock had been known to blend with other Long Island Tribes such as the Montauketts through intermarrying. This blended not only blood lines but cultural practices. Aspects of blending with African members of the runaway Slave trade also were documented. This influenced part of the current cultural practices of the Shinnecock as well.

Culture is an ever changing entity. It has the ability to adapt and if it is not celebrated and commemorated culture can die off. This responsibility to keep heritage and culture alive is no small task and brings up the question: What does it mean to be a Shinnecock on today’s world?
Culture is an ever changing entity. It has the ability to adapt and if it is not celebrated and commemorated culture can die off. This responsibility to keep heritage and culture alive is no small task and brings up the question: What does it mean to be a Shinnecock on today’s world?
 

Defining Historic and Modern Cultural Experiences
by Alexandra Bonecutter

Coastal Cultural Experience is certainly not without culture! During our venture to Southampton Town and continuing the discussion on culture, we further questioned whether or not modern America has its own culture, and the difficulties in defining a culture. Is it possible to put such a broad concept into a rigid definition? That’s exactly what the indigenous inhabitants of Long Island were forced to do during the years of European colonization. Conforming an entire historical community of people under a single label was the basis of creating a reservation for the conservation of the culture. Yet, as we discussed, culture was referred to as a ‘living, breathing entity’ which grows and changes through the generations. Thus the challenges faced by the indigenous peoples in proving their ‘culture’ to the early settlers of LI.

Pictured: Our two noble leaders (Professors Kurt Bretsch and Tara Rider) on an exceptionally beautiful, crisp morning in Southampton Town. Here the class discussed a number of topics underneath the morning sun on the northern tip of Agawon Pond before a tour of the Southampton Historical Museum.

Today, culture is a hot topic of both discussion and debate as political correctness gains momentum with millennials. Defining the line between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation is almost as difficult as defining a single culture. The breathing, ever-developing entity of the human identity is a distinct characteristic of cultural foundations. Through geographical borders, differences have arisen that have certainly made the human population unique in its extreme diversity. The active discussion on sharing an appreciation for another culture is important in developing an understanding for one another among our immense differences. With this in mind however, we are ultimately, simply, one species. Collectively, we may even have our own living, breathing culture.

A new lease on tribal life
by Chris Wozny

The Shinnecock tribe in South Hampton is one of 537 recognized tribes in the US. A tribe must prove cultural significance that are still observed and practiced today in order to gain recognition by the government and be granted land for reservations. Although the Shinnecock speak English, have a presbyterian church, are part of the broader Algonquin tribe and blended their culture with runaway slaves, they are still able to prove cultural significance in accordance with the federal government, enough to gain protected lands. Unfortunately for the Montaukett Indians the courts did not feel they had enough continued culture to obtain the same status. One of the main reason the Shinnecock were able to prove continued cultural significance is because so many of them remained on Long Island despite being taxed, harassed and pressured to move by European settlers.

However, despite their official recognition in 2010, there is still a battle for land between the tribe and government. A 1000 year lease signed in 1703 by the government and the tribe was broken in 1859 by Southampton officials who falsified a new lease relinquishing about three quarters of Shinnecock land to the town. Members of the tribe are now involved in a lawsuit over the developed land and may decide to claim rights to it, which would include hundreds of homes, stores and the Stony Brook University Southampton campus. However the re-evaluation of this lease may threaten the land they have now, which is some of the best in Southampton, located directly on the bay. For the tribe it may become a question of quantity vs. quality. It’s a difficult spot to be in for the Shinnecock, but at least the choice is theirs to make.