Once known to the Pennacook Abenaki as Cocheco (meaning “place of the rapid current”) and known to early English colonists as the Cocheco Plantation, Dover New Hampshire is a city familiar with Major Richard Waldron. Many streets, buildings, and civic properties bear his name. In 1698, Waldron was executed by the Pennacooks in an event that came to be known as the Cocheco Massacre.

The life and livelihood of Major Waldron is celebrated in colonial era histories that have resonated down to the present day. Waldron’s story has been told and retold for over 300 years, usually painting him as a tragic hero and the Pennacook Indians as the “savages” who murdered Waldron.

But what does this story look like from their perspective of the Pennacook?

Pennacook Retribution – “Who Shall Judge the Indians Now?”, is a short documentary written by Anne Jennison (Traditional Abenaki Storyteller & Historian) in collaboration with the Cowasuck Band of the Pennacook-Abenaki People and the Indigenous New Hampshire Collaborative Collective. The documentary reframes a moment in history through the eyes of the people who have lived on this land for over 12,000 years. 

A Pennacook Retribution Resource Guide accompanies the film, and encourages deeper exploration into the film’s content and themes. The Guide includes activities for all ages and can be viewed and downloaded here.

The Center for the Humanities at the University of New Hampshire administered financial support for this film through an American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Sustaining Public Engagement Grants, made possible by the National Endowment for the Humanities’ Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan (SHARP).

Written & Narrated by Anne Jennison
Created in collaboration with Kathleen Blake, Paul Pouliot, and Denise Pouliot
With thanks to The Cowasuck Band of the Pennacook-Abenaki People

Major Richard Waldron Played by Paul Bellefeuille

Directed & Edited by Catherine Stewart
Cinematography by Michael Rodriguez Torrent
Music Composed by Charlie Jennison
Music Supervision & Additional Production by CJ Lewis
Production Support by Svetlana Peshkova, and Indigenous New Hampshire Collaborative Collective
Additional thanks to Katie Umans and The Center for the Humanities at the University of New Hampshire

Produced by Film Unbound