Piscataway are a Native American people of what is now southern Maryland. They belong to the Algonquian language group of eastern woodland tribes. Their traditional lands extended from Chesapeake Bay to the Potomac River. The Piscataway are closely related to the Conoy and Nanticoke of what is now Pennsylvania.
Archaeologists believe that the Piscataway were the earliest people to live in southern Maryland. Traditionally, the Piscataway lived by hunting and fishing and by gathering food from wild plants. They also grew corn, beans, pumpkins, and tobacco. They lived in small villages of rectangular houses. The houses had arched roofs covered in bark or woven mats. A defensive palisade (fence of wooden stakes) often surrounded and protected a village.
The English explorer John Smith first encountered the Piscataway in 1608. British colonists later arrived in the region. The Piscataway and the colonists generally enjoyed friendly relations. However, many Piscataway died from diseases introduced by colonists. Later, conflicts with colonists and the nearby Susquehannock further reduced the Piscataway population. Many survivors moved north and were adopted into Iroquois tribes. Others remained in Maryland and intermarried with local populations. After 1793, no records in the region list the Piscataway as a distinct group.
In the 1960’s, a tribal leader called Chief Turkey began efforts to reclaim and revitalize Piscataway heritage. In 2012, the governor of Maryland formally recognized the Piscataway as a Native American tribe. Today, the Piscataway are divided into three main groups. They are the Piscataway Indian Nation and Tayac Territory, the Piscataway Conoy Tribe of Maryland, and the Cedarville Band of Piscataway.
