Following the previous post, of the first day of the Indigenous Culture and Training, the onsite visit to Chicone Village, known as Handsell, in Vienna, MD was literally a breath of fresh air.

Touring the Village site, with the 17th Century Native Living Historian Drew Shuptar-rayvis is something that by NOT being there can NOT be replicated. Adding to the list of what are local heritage sites I was largely unaware of, the resources of oral stories and education certainly are tied to place.

When I first graduated from high school, I knew the right location to attend at a college would just be the way the location, that particular college would reach out to me and call to me, and it did. We had this discussion about how people view land, a sense of home, and how certain locations can do the same thing. Chicone and Handsell, the very same. The fields, the history that many are unaware of, the heritage of Indigenous presence is more than any history books have attempted to address and being there in the moment was something that can truly only happen when you are there.

Having the fortune to be a part of this training thanks to the partnership with the Maryland State Department of Education and Maryland State Arts Council, but the sole sponsorship is through the Archives, where Drew Shuptar-rayvis, Maria Day, Autumn Powell, and Megan Craynon work. The generous grant that has made this work possible comes from the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority.

I think Handsell and Chicone, well I KNOW it is more than meets the eye, we had the privilege of hearing accounts based on extensive research, information that normally can only be obtained and seen in a museum and often doctored and lying outside the borders of reality. Not so on this day. If anything, solidifying the fact that there is a history, and there are stories that are unknown and have gone unnoticed is even more reason to be curious.

Handsell History 101, the Short Version:

In 1665, Thomas Taylor was granted 700 acres of Land called “Handsell”  along the Nanticoke River in the location of Chicone Indian town.  In 1704 this land was made part of an Indian reservation by an Act of the Maryland Assembly.  In 1769 the properties were returned to the ownership of the English families who had possessed the land grants.

Handsell is one of the last remaining 18th c. brick dwelling houses in Dorchester Co.  Originally a grand,  two story Georgian home, a major event, possibly a fire at Handsell gutted much of the interior and weakened the rear exterior wall, causing a partial collapse of the structure.

After a  fire (cause undetermined), Handsell was rebuilt to the one and one-half story structure  we see today.  The interior woodwork is all original to the period of the rebuild in 1837 by John Shehee, a local farmer.

This brick dwelling house exhibits a unique façade with a protruding pavilion and Flemish bond brickwork, indicating the builder’s knowledge of contemporary design trends.

Handsell is listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places!!!

Not only from the cultural artifacts that Drew brought, but experiencing the cool feel of the lean to “work shelter” and feeling the coolness in the dead heat of the day outside, alot of realizations are made. This is a location that lies outside of the traditional museum experience, one that pulls at you to dig deeper and learn more about things that have been untold and that carry more meaning. This certainly was a good start to what we were discovering about the lands we walk on the Eastern Shore.