Untold Stories: Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck, First Native American Indian University Grad
Circa 1644, a Wampanoag tribal chief had a son named Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck, who was gifted—and wanted to attend university.
There are so many inspiring, beautiful stories about the great heroes of American history which are scarcely ever told. One happens on them accidentally—buried in a thick, out-of-print biography, in small print on a museum sign, casually and fleetingly mentioned in an obscure educational video. America cannot return to greatness in the future if we do not truly understand the greatness of our past. That is why I am writing an article series to tell a few of these little-known but moving “untold stories” of American greatness.
Stories I previously recounted in this article series include how the white citizens of Greencastle, PA saved their fellow black Pennsylvanians from enslaving Confederate invaders, how George Washington single-handedly ended dangerous infighting in the Revolutionary Army, and several largely-unknown US heroes who made their mark in WWII and the Korean War. Today’s story goes back before America was even its own nation, however.
Who was the first American Indian to graduate from an American university? In modernity we have grown up so much with the idea that there was no such thing as racial integration in American history until very recently that, like me, perhaps, many Americans would be inclined to guess that the first American Indian college graduate was almost within our living memory. The first native to graduate from a university here did so before there even was a United States of America, however—more than a hundred years before. Meet Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck, of the Wampanoag tribe and Harvard Class of 1665.
According to The Harvard Gazette, “The Charter of 1650, by which Harvard continues to be governed, pledges the University to ‘the education of English and Indian youth.’” The early English settlers were a lot less racist than they are now made out to be (at least initially)! Not only did the natives and the settlers feast together at the First Thanksgiving, and learn from each other, but Harvard from almost its earliest days (it was founded in 1636) was open to individuals eager to learn regardless of ethnicity. While there was a particular college founded specially for Indians (the Harvard Indian College) at the University, the University was nonetheless clearly hoping to attract native students.
“[Native Heritage Project] Cheeshahteaumuck, of the Wampanoag tribe, came from Martha’s Vineyard and attended a preparatory school in Roxbury. At Harvard, he lived and studied in the Indian College, Harvard’s first brick building, with a fellow member of the Wampanoags, Joel Iacoomes. Cheeshahteaumuck died of tuberculosis in Watertown less than a year after graduation.
Apart from Cheeshahteaumuck and Iacoomes, at least two other Native American students attended the Indian College. One of them, Eleazar, died before graduating and the other, John Wampus, left to become a mariner. As for Iacoomes, he was lost in a shipwreck a few months prior to graduation while returning to Harvard from Martha’s Vineyard. It is therefore believed that Cheeshahteaumuck is the only native American to have graduated in the lifetime of the Indian College. These first students studied in an educational system that emphasized Greek, Latin, and religious instruction.”
Unfortunately, the Indian College seems to have been plagued with bad luck in terms of how young three of its four known students died; but it was still a significant institution historically. Below is a more detailed explanation of why Cheeshahteaumuck in particular was special—and not just because he graduated.
“[The Mayflower Project] The Wampanoag were the indigenous people of Plymouth Harbor who helped the settlers survive the first year. The Thanksgiving Holiday we all celebrate was first held in the fall of 1621 when the Pilgrims realized they would survive in the New World thanks to the Wampanoag.
The Wampanoag were a blessing to the Pilgrims and all generations thereafter.
A few years later, a Wampanoag tribal chief had a son named Caleb Cheesha[h]teaumuck, who was gifted.
In today’s world, he would get a full tuition scholarship based solely on academic merit to the college of his choice. Back then, Harvard was his only option. According to Harvard University’s Peabody Museum, Caleb passed the Harvard College entrance exams at around age 15. He learned Latin, studied Greek mythology and pondered the ancient philosophers. He excelled.
Caleb graduated in 1665, a year shy of Harvard’s 30th Anniversary.
He had a bright future, but not today’s medicine. He died shortly after graduation of tuberculosis, then called consumption.
We will never know what impact he could have had on American history. Tragically, shortly after his death tensions grew significantly between the native tribes of Plymouth Bay and the colonists, whose numbers had grown tremendously since 1620 with a desire for land occupied by the indigenous people of the region. King Philip’s War (1675-1676) was the eventual result. It has been describe as the bloodiest conflict per capita in American history.”
It might be tempting to call Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck’s life a tragic failure or to mourn how quickly war replaced peace between the English and the American Indians. I posit, however, that no trailblazer is a failure—Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck proved to the English that Europeans did not have a monopoly on intelligence, talent, or courage. Caleb was not only very smart and gifted, he had the courage to leave his tribe and his home and go study foreign subjects in foreign languages among people who, almost overwhelmingly, were of a different heritage, culture, and ethnicity than he. Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck was not only the first American Indian graduate from Harvard (or any American university) but he excelled. To be first at something, and to do it excellently well, is such a compliment as few people can be justly given when they die—and so Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck deserves to be remembered and celebrated.