Massachusetts Indigenous tribes gather for communal traditional boat building

04:05

November 22, 2022

Cristela Guerra

Andre StrongBearHeart tends to the fire while burning a traditional mishoon. A sign posted beside the worksite reads "In the memorial of all Northeast Woodland Indigenous, who were murdered and beheaded by the English for public display." (Jesse Costa/WBUR)

In November, local Indigenous peoples gathered on the banks of the Mystic River in Charlestown, Massachusetts. They arrived to learn a new — yet ancient — skill: how to use fire to build a traditional dugout canoe, called a mishoon.

WBUR's Cristela Guerra reports.

This segment aired on November 22, 2022.

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