Attaquin, Ebenezer, 1810 - 1854

Ebenezer Attaquin, also known as Ebenezer Attaquin Jr., although his father was Ezra, was prominent in Mashpee political affairs and served for a time as a selectmen of the district.  He was born circa 1810, the son of Ezra and Sarah Jones Attaquin.  Ebenezer, age 23, was enumerated with his parents and nine siblings in a 1834 Mashpee census and was a signatory on the January 1834 Mashpee petition written by William Apes.  Ebenezer signed along with 288 other Mashpee residents and community members outlining a number of longstanding grievances against the overseers and the Congregational missionary to the tribe.  Ebenezer was a signatory on additional petitions in 1839, 1840, 1844, and 1847 regarding infringements on the community's autonomy, religious freedom and hunting practices1. He died in 1854 leaving no widow and a minor child.  Ebenezer's brother, Solomon, became the trustee of his estate for the benefit of the minor child. Massachusetts, Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988, Vol. 1.  Ancestry; Petition of the Mashpee Indians to the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1834.01.29.00; Petition of Ebenezer Attaquin and Other Mashpee Indians to the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1839.03.01.00; Massachusetts Archives, Unpassed House Legislation, No. 714, March 1840; Petition of Solomon Attaquin and Other Proprietors of the Mashpee Tribe to the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1844.02.00.00; Petition of Oaks Coombs and Other Mashpee Indians to the Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1847.01.25.00; Massachusetts, Wills and Probate Records, 1635-1991, Barnstable Affidavits; Guardians Bonds; Admin Bonds; Wills, Vol 78-81, 1846-1861, Ancestry.

• 1. There is some confusion about which Ebenezer Attaquin signed which petitions as their adult life spans overlap one another.