Beginnings

Long before European colonization, Native Americans were the indigenous peoples. Massachusetts was named after the "Massachusett" tribe of Native Americans who lived near Massachusetts Bay. "Massachusett" translates from Algonquin as "The people who live near the great hill." Archaelogists believe that another tribe of Algonquins named the "Nipmuck" lived in Acton as long as 7,000 years ago along the Assabet River. The name Nipmuck comes from the Algonquin word "nipnet" which means "small pond place." It is sometimes translated as "fresh water people."

The Algonquin peoples established several villages within their territory: a village on a lake, river or brook for fishing; a village near open fields for planting and harvesting; and a village close to woodlands for hunting. The areas near Nagog and Fort Ponds would have provided excellent fishing for salmon, shad, alewives, pickerel, perch and hornpout. The fields along Route 2A were perfect for planting corn and squash. The woods north of Acton center were ideal hunting grounds for deer, bear, beaver, wild turkey, ducks, fox, rabbits and racoons.

Between 1616 and 1619, a European-introduced plague decimated much of the Native American population in New England. In 1646, the first Puritan missionary converted many of the remaining Massachusett tribes to Christianity; they were subsequently confined to "praying villages." In 1655, the Christian Indian Village of Nashobah was established around Nagog Pond. The town of Nashobah covered four square miles including Nagog and Fort Ponds. The town was never prosperous partly because of raids by the Maquas or Mohawks between 1665 and 1670. The Nashobah population was 50 in 1674. In 1680 the Nashobas gave up their plantation, which was included in the township of Acton on July 3, 1735. After King Philip's War, many Native Americans were confined to the islands in Boston Harbor even though they served as guides and scouts.

During a recent excavation, a Nipmuck settlement was unearthed in South Acton. It is called the Pinehawk site, which is now recognized as one of the more significant Native American sites in New England.