Leaving the land of plenty: Lecture describes New England life from natives to colonists

Talk kicks off seventh annual Sea Grant/Cooperative Extension Community Summer Lecture Series

NARRAGANSETT—Nearly 400 years ago, European colonists arrived in New England, and with backbreaking labor, set about transforming a bountiful land into one of scarcity.

In his talk, "Life on Coastal Lands in Colonial New England," John McNiff, National Park Service Ranger at Roger Williams National Memorial, describes how Southeastern New England Native Americans' low-intensity farming, fishing, hunting, and managing the landscape produced an abundance of food, while Europeans' high-intensity farming and other land-use practices usually ended up with a shortage, wreaking havoc on deer and bear habitat, destroying salmon runs, and setting the stage for forest fires.

As an example, "Native Americans set fire to the woods every year," McNiff says, creating a healthy environment for nut trees, berry bushes, and game animals. "In the 1640s, colonists banned burning because they didn't see the benefit of it," resulting in the tangle of briers and scrub trees that we see around New England today.

McNiff will present "Life on Coastal Lands in Colonial New England" at the North Kingstown Free Library, 100 Boone St., on Wednesday, June 14 at 7 p.m. The presentation is free, but seating is limited, so reservations are required. Contact the North Kingstown Free Library at (401) 294-3306.

Sponsored by Rhode Island Sea Grant, the URI Cooperative Extension/Nutrition and Food Sciences Department, and the North Kingstown Free Library. For information about the other talks in this series, visit http://seagrant.gso.uri.edu/news/ or call (401) 874-6842.

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