Squanto: The Incredible True Story of an Early Professional Interpreter

Myth has often shrouded the colonial period. Events such as the Salem Witch Trials have become highly distorted over the years, especially through the efforts of the TV and film industries. Additionally, living history sites, such as Plymouth Plantation have both sensationalized and commercialized the era while often downplaying the problematic issues of the time. The story of Squanto, the famous Native American who helped the Pilgrims upon their arrival in the New World, is no exception. However, by peeling back the myth, one can discover the incredible true story of Squanto, an early professional interpreter with great significance to world history.

Origins of a Professional Interpreter

Squanto’s origins are difficult to discern. Nevertheless, historians generally agree that he was born around 1585 to the Patuxet tribe on the outskirts of the present-day town of Plymouth. Although no written sources from the Patuxet survive today, scholars believe that they were an agricultural society led by a sachem and a council of nobles within the community. Despite the fact that English colonists didn’t arrive en masse until the Pilgrims came in 1620, the Patuxet did occasionally interact with European cod fisherman in the years before the Pilgrim settlement in the New World. However, these encounters proved disastrous for the tribe, as the diseases brought by Europeans would eventually wipe out the entire tribe (in addition to other native groups in the region). Nevertheless, Squanto escaped the scourge of disease due to the fact that he was kidnapped in 1614 by men under the command of Captain Thomas Hunt, a trader who tricked Squanto and 19 of his companions to climb aboard ship under the pretense of trade. After a stop in the Spanish port city of Málaga, Hunt and his crew brought their captives to England, where Squanto lived as a slave for a number of years. While living in England, Squanto received informal language training in English from his master, John Slany, who after a period of time decided to provide Squanto with passage to the New World. Yet when Squanto returned to Plymouth in 1619, he returned to a village in a state of disrepair.  His whole tribe had been struck down by disease.

The Diplomatic Efforts of Squanto

By 1620, Squanto had become a member of the Wampanoag tribe, a neighbor to his native Patuxet tribe. When the Pilgrims arrived in Plymouth in 1621, Squanto was able to put his English knowledge to good use by acting as an interpreter for meetings. After much debate over how to approach the new settlers, Massasoit, the sachem of the local Wampanoag tribe, agreed to a conference with Pilgrim leaders, with Squanto acting as a critical interpreter for conference activities. This meeting resulted in the first major agreement between the English and the Native Americans in the area.  It also established a defense relationship between the two parties. Squanto put his conference interpreting skills to good use by creating non-aggression agreements with hostile native groups. For example, when the Nauset tribe from Cape Cod kidnapped one of the Pilgrim’s children, Squanto brokered a deal with them and was able to secure the child’s release, relieving tensions that could have led to a war that the Pilgrims most assuredly would have lost. Clearly, Squanto was more than just a benevolent helper to the Pilgrims.  He was a skilled diplomat whose conference interpretation services helped ensure the survival of the English settlers in North America.