Wassamassaw
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (Enrolled members: 1,500) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 United States South Carolina
|
|
| Languages | |
| English, formerly Siouan | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity |
The Wassamassaw Tribe of Varnertown Indians, is a small state recognized tribe of Native Americans descended from historic tribes of the Colonial Era. Located in Berkeley County in the Low Country, in 2005 the people were granted recognition as an Indian group by the State of South Carolina, the first stage in recognition as a tribe. The tribe is headquartered in Berkeley County, South Carolina.
The tribe is one of six that were recognized in the early 21st century by South Carolina, including the Waccamaw-Siouan Tribe, the Chaloklowa Chickasaw, some Pee Dee bands, and a composite group known as "The Eastern Cherokee, Southern Iroquois, and United Tribes." The Catawba Indian Nation is the only one in South Carolina that is federally recognized by the U.S. Government.
Wassamassaw was a swamp located between Summerville and Moncks Corner, South Carolina in the area of Varnertown, where the tribe of that name has lived. Like other tribes in the area, the Wassamassaw ended their name with "aw" or "o" to refer to their connection with coastal water. The name may have meant "connecting water", and it is one of only a few place names in the United States that is a palindrome.
The tribe's current population is 1,500. In South Carolina 27,000 people self-identify as Native American. To be recognized by the state, the Wassamassaw had to show that they had lived as a community for at least a century. Records from the 19th century showed that "Indian Mary", an Edisto recognized as an Indian in her court challenge of taxes required of free people of color, married a Varnertown resident. As the reporter Bo Petersen has noted, the Wassamassaw may be "the last living link to the Edisto", a people who are extinct as an organized tribe.
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