Ow-wae-nung-gan-nunck

Illustration accompanying an article hosted on ipernity: John Chandler's 1705 Road From Woodstock to Hartford.

 

The illustration is derived from deeds circa 1730 pointing to a crossing on the Willimantic River. The crossing and related interconnected paths come from a variety of sources: deeds, 1800s county and school district maps as well as 1890s, 1940s and more recent USGS maps.

 

The routes illustrated align with the signatures of similar path structures found throughout southern New England.

 

Posted at: www.ipernity.com/blog/323963/538531

 

Also posted at: www.mapgraphs.blogspot.com

 

 

The illustration is an interpretation of John Chandler's road from Woodstock to Hartford on his 1705 Map of the Mohegan Sachems Hereditary Country, showing the possible crossing on the Willimantic River above what is labeled on Chandler's map as Ow-wae-nung-gan-nunck. As Trumbull notes:

 

“Ow-wee-on-huny-ya-nuch' (Moh.): a place ‘where the people go to catch salmon’ on Willimantic river, ‘half a mile below the road from Hartford to Woodstock.’ Chandler's Survey, 1705 : Owwaenunggannunck, ibid. (Map). Between Willington and Tolland.” (Trumbull, 41)

 

 

Note, from R.A. Douglas-Lithgow below. It's plausible to suggest that the location is at or near, or below the bend of the Willimantic River, just below the road from Woodstock to Hartford. There is a large bend just below the ford for the Woodstock to Hartford Road over the Willimantic River and another winding bend further downstream. A 1759 land transaction survey notes a beaver dam on the Willimantic River in the vicinity of the place ‘where the people go to catch salmon’ (Willington Land Records, Book C, Page 402).

 

From Douglas-Lithgow:

 

Wochsquamugguck Brook or place, near Norwich (Moh.), 1669. “Place of taking salmon,” or other fish. (Place Names of Connecticut, 59)

 

Wanungaatuck Brook (Moh.), “at the bend or winding of the river." (Place Names of Connecticut, 52)

 

Ouschankamaug, Windsor, “A fishing place for eels or lampreys.” (Place Names of Connecticut, 26)

 

Wonunkapaugcook (Place Names of Connecticut, 56)

 

Wongum, Middletown, “A bend” or “at the bend” (Place Names of Connecticut, 59)

 

Unggwonshackcook (Moh.), Marlborough. “ land at the bend or crotch of the brook.” (Place Names of Connecticut, 50)

 

 

From Trumbull:

 

Wonk’emaug pond: betw. Washington (New Preston) and Warren, within the tract formerly called Weramaug's hunting grounds, or Raumaug ; hence, Raumaug pond, and now, " Weramaug lake." C. R. Lands, i. 92 ; iv. 35. Its Indian name, otherwise written Wonkkecomatig "signifies a crooked pond," 1720 (C R. Lds., iii. 364) ; more exactly, 'a crooked fishing-place' wonki-amaug. (Trumbull, 90)

 

 

Woehsquamugguek (Moh.) : "a brook or place" between Wisquades and Norwich so. bounds, where a parcel of meadow was laid out to Mr. Benj. Brewster, in 1669. Col. Rec., iii. 220, note. Near Poquetanock brook, and the present line betw. Preston and Ledyard. Named, probably, from some kind of fish taken there : like m squamauguck (Misquamicuk) 'place of taking salmon,' and other names of similar composition. (Trumbull, 89)

 

 

Unggwonshackcook, -shacook, -suckcook (Moh.): a place "at the crotch of a river called by the English Fawn River, where the road crosses the same from Colchester to Hartford." Chandler's Survey, 1705. The crotch of Fawn river and Blackledge's river is in the s. e. part of Marlborough, a little w. of Hebron line. Wonggunnshoake, 1666, Col. Rec., ii. 42 ; Wongushock, id. iii. 69. The name denotes ' land at the bend, or crotch, of the brook,' where Blackledge's river bends eastward to its union with Fawn river. (Trumbull, 75)

 

around, waéenu, adv. and prep. it goes around, winds or curves around (waene, wewěne, about, C.); quinnuppe, adv. [quin-appu, quinuppu, it turns about], about, around; (Natick Dictionary, 221)

 

weenuhkauónat, v. t. an.: weenuhkauwaog neg, they encamp round about them Ps. 34, 7; (Natick Dictionary, 186)

 

 

Some Comparisons, given the wide variety of English transliterations of Algonquian words or phrases:

 

Owwee-on-huny-ya-nuch - or – Owwae-nung-gan-nunck

 

[owe] ung-gwon-shack-cook

Wa-nun-gaa-tuck

wochs-qua-mug-guck

wan-ke-maug

Woeh-squa-mug-guek

Ousch-an-ka-maug

 

 

Resources:

Douglas-Lithgow, R. A. Native American Place Names of Connecticut. Applewood Books, Bedford, MA. Print. from:

Douglas-Lithgow, R. A. Dictionary of American Indian Place and Proper Names of New England. Salem, 1909. Web.

 

 

Trumbull, J. Hammond, Indian Names of Places Etc., In and On The Borders Of Connecticut: With Interpretations Of Some Of Them, Hartford, 1881. Web.

 

Trumbull, J. Hammond. Natick Dictionary, A New England Lexicon. Lincoln, 2009.

 

Done