Yaocomico
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (Extinct as a tribe) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Maryland, north of Potomac River | |
| Languages | |
| Algonquian, historical | |
| Religion | |
| Native | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Piscataway |
The Yaocomico, or Yaocomaco, were an Algonquian-speaking Native American group who lived along the north bank of the Potomac River near its confluence with the Chesapeake Bay in the 17th century. They were related to the Piscataway, the dominant nation north of the Potomac.
The settlers who arrived to found the English colony of Maryland purchased land for their first settlement from the Yaocomico. By the late-17th century, the tribe had disappeared from the historical record. Historians believe this was mostly due to epidemics of newly introduced infectious disease and to pressure from European settlers and other Native groups.
The Yaocomico were one of the Algonquian-speaking groups, who lived mostly in the coastal tidewater areas of present-day Maryland. The Piscataway were dominant to the north of the Potomac River, but there were many smaller tribes such as the Yaocomico. Maryland also had Iroquoian-speaking tribes, particularly the Susquehannock along the Susquehanna River, who had been raiding into Algonquian territory. There were also Siouan-speaking tribes to the west and southwest.
According to historical tradition, the first settlers of the Maryland colony purchased the land for their settlement at St. Mary's City from the Yaocomico, who had a settlement in the area. In 1634, Leonard Calvert, the first governor of the Maryland colony, met the Yaocomico along the Potomac below the island the Europeans had named St. Clement's Island. Yaocomico is referred to in different sources as either the name of the natives living in the area or as the name of the leader of the village. It was a tribe. The colonists had previously encountered and traded with Natives further upriver and so had some experience with them. As a result of the meeting, the Yaocomico traded approximately 30 acres (12 ha) of land for a variety of European-made metal tools and cloth. Apparently the Yaocomico were willing to relocate from this village, and it was an ideal place for European settlement, as it had already been cleared.
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