Pamunkey Indian Museum and Cultural Center

08/07/2026

Exciting news! We are thrilled to announce that we have been awarded a major grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services through their Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services program! This funding will support content and narrative development for a reimagined exhibition, and the drafting of exhibition design plans. This will result in a shovel-ready plan for fabrication and implementation once additional funding is secured and building upgrades are completed.

This is a major step forward and we can't wait to get started on this journey. We hope you'll follow along with us here! If you want to support our work to expand and renovate the museum, you can donate to the Pamunkey Foundation by visiting the link in comments.

08/04/2026

Come visit us at the Upper King William Branch Library grand opening celebration with King William County Library System this Saturday 8/8! We will be there representing the Museum and making connections with our neighbors in the county. We'll be there from 11am to 1pm at 7890 Richmond Tappahannock Hwy, Aylett, VA 23086!

Afterwards, head down to the Reservation for the Kenaanee Summer Festival hosted by the Virginia Native Arts Alliance! There will be Native artist vendors and demonstrations, short film screenings, live music, and food trucks! The festival will be open from 11am to 5pm at the Pamunkey Indian Tribal Community Center at 225 Lay Landing Rd, King William, VA 23086.

07/30/2026

Come on out and visit us tomorrow (7/31) at the Louisa County Fair! We'll be there representing the Museum and talking to folks about the work we're doing to bring Pamunkey stories to wider audiences. There will be banners and poster displays, as well as hands-on activities for kids!

The fair opens at 9am, and we'll be there until about 3:30pm. We hope to see you there!

The Louisa County Fair is event of the summer in Central Virginia. Bringing county fair fun, just a few miles from Lake Anna, and only an hour drive from Richmond, Charlottesville, and Fredericksburg.

07/29/2026

On Monday, we were pleased to be visited by representatives from the Virginia Department of Veterans Services and the Virginia Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs. Pamunkey people have served in every major conflict the United States has been involved in, all the way back to the Revolutionary War! It was a lovely conversation and there were lots of fantastic ideas generated for ways to honor Pamunkey service in the U.S. Armed Forces.

Pictured here, from left to right:
Virginia Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs, Timothy P. Williams (MG, USA, Ret.)
Former Pamunkey Chief and Virginia Board of Veteran Services Member, Robert Gray (CMSgt, USAF, Ret.)
Deputy Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs, Lesley Kipling (Col, USA, Ret.)
Virginia Department of Veterans Services Commissioner, John Maxwell

07/21/2026

Call to Action!

The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation have issued new draft regulations to the National Historic Preservation Act that would "devastate our ability to protect and preserve historic places and would dramatically curtail public participation in federal decisions that affect local communities." The NHPA is a cornerstone of the historic preservation field, and existing provisions require consultation with Tribes and others before allowing projects that would have an impact on historic and cultural resources. The proposed regulations would gut those provisions, among other changes.

Cultural Heritage Partners has put together a website where you can learn more about this threat and what you can do to help. Please take a moment to visit the site and consider drafting a comment letter during the upcoming public comment period.

Cultural Heritage Partners is a private law firm committed to the principle that cultural heritage is a human right.

07/13/2026

We hope you'll come out this Wednesday for a fantastic panel discussion in Preservation Virginia's Reconsidering Bacon's Rebellion at 350 lecture series: "Mapping the Dragon: An Indigenous History of Bacon’s Rebellion". Among the panelists is Allyson Gray, a member of Pamunkey Tribal Council, a cultural practitioner, and an amazing artist!

This Wednesday, 7/15 at 6pm at Jamestown Settlement, 2110 Jamestown Road, Williamsburg, VA 23185. Tickets are on sale now!

Rarely acknowledged in historical narratives, Virginia’s Indigenous nations shaped American history in countless ways, including the events surrounding Nathaniel Bacon’s 1676 insurrection.

07/08/2026

Standing-room-only at a community meeting last night to educate the public about the importance of the Tree Hill site, birthplace of Wahunsenacawh. Thank you to ABC 8News - WRIC for helping spread the word about preserving this sacred cultural landscape!

A standing-room-only crowd packed the Varina Library in Henrico County on Tuesday to learn about the historical significance of Tree Hill — a site at the center of a controversial development…

06/18/2026

Please check out this great article from VPM on important advocacy work to protect a site of major significance to Virginia Tribes! Thank you also to Preservation Virginia for their support and listing the site as one of Virginia's most endangered historic places in 2026.

A Canadian developer is looking to revive a 2007-era project at the site.

06/15/2026

Last week, Interior Glass Solutions replaced the Museum's striking storefront windows. The old windows had failing gaskets, separating panes, and were letting in a lot of heat and ultraviolet light. It was really impressive work seeing these folks maneuver 300+ pound sheets of glass into place, and we can't thank them enough for their help!

The new windows are UV filtering, and will help protect the building and the collections we steward for the Tribe for years to come. We also have some ideas for making these windows even more striking, so be on the lookout for that as well!

06/04/2026

Yesterday, archaeologists from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources were on site to help PIT staff and Citizens investigate an area of potential impact around one of the Tribe's historic buildings. We are starting work on the 1932 Pottery School through VDHR's VA 250 Preservation Fund grant program, which will involve some ground disturbance. This archaeological mitigation will ensure no important features or sites are damaged in the process. A big thank you to VDHR's staff for offering their time and expertise as we work to stabilize and protect this important representation of the Pamunkey pottery tradition!