PASSAMAQUODDY

Algonkian-speaking Indians who lived on Passamaquoddy Bay, St. Croix River, and Schoodic Lake on the boundary between what are now Maine and New Brunswick. They belonged to the Abnaki (q.v.) confederacy, and their language was closely related to that of the Malecite (q.v.). They depended on hunting and fishing for subsistence; birch bark and wood were used for manufacture. Villages, consisting of conical dwellings and a large council house, were sometimes palisaded. A tribal council of the war chief, the civil chief, and representatives of each family decided most important matters; a general council of the entire tribe decided war matters. The pressure of white settlement restricted their territory, and in 1866 they were settled mainly at Sebaik, on the south side of the bay, and on Lewis Island. The Passamaquoddy and the Penobscot (q.v.) send to the Maine state legislature a representative who serves without a seat or vote and is permitted to speak only on matters of tribal concern. In the late 20th century there were two Passamaquoddy reservations in Maine and a total tribal population of more than 1,000.