A portion of the Fones Cliffs in Virginia above the Rappahannock River was reclaimed by the Rappahannock Tribe. The cliffs in this photo were not part of the requisition and have yet to be protected from development/Chesapeake Conservancy, Jeffrey Allenby
Four hundred and sixty-five acres along a four-mile stretch of sandstone cliffs on the north bank of the Rappahannock River in Virginia, a place where Captain John Smith first encountered the Rappahannock tribe in 1608, was recovered by the tribe.
The site, known as Fones Cliffs, has long been sacred to the tribe. Prior to contact with the English, the Rappahannock tribe lived in at least three villages on the cliffs – Wecuppom, Matchopick and Pissacoack. The Fones Cliffs are located within the authorized boundaries of the Rappahannock River Valley National Wildlife Refuge. The land will be owned by the Rappahannock Tribe and will be publicly available and held with a permanent conservation easement conveyed to the Service.
The Rappahannock River below the cliffs is part of the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail. Smith’s journals describe three Native American settlements above the cliffs and a skirmish with a few dozen Rappahannock warriors.
“We have worked for many years to restore this sacred place for the tribe. Since eagles are messengers of prayer, this area where they congregate has always been a place of natural, cultural and spiritual significance,” said Rappahannock Tribe Chief Anne Richardson.
“The [Interior] The department is honored to join the Rappahannock Tribe in co-stewardship of this part of their ancestral homeland. We look forward to leveraging tribal expertise and indigenous knowledge to help manage the region’s wildlife and habitat,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said Friday during a ceremony to celebrate the OK. “This historic reacquisition underscores how central tribes, private landowners and other stakeholders all play a central role in this administration’s work to ensure our conservation efforts are locally led and support health and wellness. communities.”
The Rappahannock Tribe will preserve the land and the wildlife that thrives on it, including migrating birds and waterfowl. The Fones Cliffs are home to bald eagle nests and have been designated by the National Audubon Society as an Important Bird Area of Global Significance. Eagles are sacred to the tribe.
The land will be publicly available and held with a permanent conservation easement conveyed to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Chesapeake Conservatory donated the easement to the USFWS, then donated the royalty title to the Rappahannock Tribe, which intends to place the land in trust with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The tribe is planning trails and a replica of a 16th-century village, where tribal citizens can educate the public about their history and Indigenous approaches to conservation and connect future generations of young Rappahannock to their tribal traditions and the river which bears their name.
“Relationships, knowledge sharing and co-stewardship with Indigenous peoples are critical to the Service’s mission,” said US Fish and Wildlife Service Director Martha Williams. “We have the direction and the tools to ensure collaboration between the Service and Tribes, and to protect cultural, trust and treaty resources on Service lands, in support of our shared priority of fish conservation, wildlife and their habitats.
“Through the generosity of the family of William Dodge Angle, MD, Chesapeake Conservancy is honored to facilitate the return of Fones Cliffs to the Tribe and to partner with them in bringing native-led conservation practices back to the Rappahannock River. said Chesapeake. Conservancy President and CEO Joel Dunn. “This is a significant step forward in the overall goal of saving approximately 2,000 acres at Fones Cliffs, a wildlife and waterfowl haven and one of the most beautiful places in Chesapeake and, indeed, of the world.”
The donation restores an iconic tribal site, which was forcibly removed from the cliffs after 1649 when English settlers took over valuable farmland.
“Warmest congratulations to the Rappahannock Tribe on the successful conclusion of a long journey to reclaim their ancestral lands at Fones Cliffs,” said U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, who introduced and successfully passed legislation in 2018 recognizing six tribes. of Virginia, including the Rappahannocks. “I am deeply grateful to everyone who has contributed to this effort, including Chief Anne Richardson, the Chesapeake Conservancy and Secretary Haaland and I look forward to continuing to work together to ensure that the federal government respects the sovereignty and self-determination of the tribes of Virginia. We have a lot of work to do to right the many wrongs inflicted on tribal communities, but milestones like this are a powerful reminder that meaningful action is possible and necessary.
Additional funding for the Rappahannock Tribe to conserve 465 acres of Indigenous ancestral land on the Rappahannock River was made possible by a grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation through Walmart’s Acres for America program.
The land provides the tribe with opportunities to expand its Return to the River program, which trains tribal youth in traditional river knowledge and practices and conducts outreach and education activities for other communities interested in the river. Rappahannock. In 2017, through the generosity of Mrs. Virginia Warner, the Chesapeake Conservancy facilitated the donation of a single acre of land near Fones Cliffs, which the tribe uses as a staging area for the program.
The Rappahannock Tribe is a federally recognized sovereign nation headquartered at Indian Neck in King & Queen County, Virginia. The areas surrounding the Rappahannock River are the tribe’s ancestral lands, and the tribe continues to live, visit, and conduct traditional cultural practices along the river. The native species of fish, birds, and plants along the river are culturally significant to the tribe.
