Native Americans have lived on Meddybemps Lake at its outlet to the Dennys River for at least 8,600 years. The Passamaquoddy people have named this site N'tolonapemk, which in Passamaquoddy means, "Our Relatives' Place."
We still get a lot of inquiries about this exhibit, which was open in our main gallery November 2012 through April 2014. It told the story of N'tolonapemk through archaeological evidence and the stories and knowledge of the Passamaquoddy people. The scientific methods used by archaeologists, contrasted with traditional Passamaquoddy stories, work together to create a complete picture and a richer understanding of this important place.
N’tolonapemk is centrally located within the ancestral Passamaquoddy territory in eastern Maine and southwestern New Brunswick. This location affords easy travel by canoe to the ocean, the St. Croix River, the lakes and waterways of interior Maine and New Brunswick, and to the abundant and varied resources these settings provide.
N’tolonapemk has always been known to the Passamaquoddy people; this important place lives on today in their oral history and traditional stories. Archaeologists have known about the site since the 1960s, but only recently has its historic and scientific importance become more widely understood through archaeological research.
We'd like to share the story of N’tolonapemk again, as seen through archaeology and the stories and knowledge of the Passamaquoddy people.