What started as a "get to know you" exercise generated through the interest of some St. David's Islanders in the historic and genealogical connections between themselves and the native North American Indians has now grown into an official visit this weekend by some 50 members of three tribes, with planned cultural activities spread over several days - all organised by the St. David's Island Indian Reconnection committee.

How the reconnection got to this point begins with the curiosity of two St. David's Islanders, St. Clair (Brinky) Tucker and his cousin, Jean Foggo-Simon, about their genealogy, including the Native American side of their family. Through Dora Minors Hollis, Mrs. Simon, who lives in Rhode Island, was put in contact with Tall Oak. A strong friendship developed, as a result of which he was invited to Bermuda to share his knowledge with the St. David's Islanders.

"Tall Oak is fascinating. He is a university lecturer, and a student of North American Indian history who is highly respected in that community, and we made arrangements for him to speak at the St. David's Cricket Club," Mr. Tucker says.

"The response was overwhelming, and Jeannie and I discussed with him having a festival to further educate and entertain our people, and Bermudians in general. Tall Oak is extremely excited about the connection with Bermuda, and spent a lot of time in the archives while he was here.

"He thought that after 200 years there would be no knowledge about the Pequots, and he was shocked to find so much information, and also to see people who resembled each other. He could also see similarities in the way St. David's Islanders live, as well as elements of Indian culture. Basically, we were known for fishing, boating, and farming, which is what the Pequots did because they lived on the east coast of America."

Preparations for this weekend's festival are the result of months of correspondence and planning by the 22-strong St. David's Island Reconnection committee, which Mr. Tucker chairs.

Fifty members of the Mashantucket, Maspee and Wampanoag tribes will arrive on Friday, June 21, 20 of whom will stay in the homes of St. David's Islanders, while the remainder will stay at Grotto Bay.

The two-day festival will be held at St. David's cricket field (Lords), and will kick off at 3.30 p.m. on Saturday, June 22 with a 30-minute Libation Ceremony in memory of loved ones who have died.

"After that, the Tall Oak group will sing and dance for about an hour in full regalia with their drums," Mr. Tucker says. "They will be followed by Wayne St. John, a Bermudian living Canada, who will be singing with Bermudians of St. David's ancestry. Then the Mashantucket Pequot tribe will perform for about an hour. They will dance and have 12 drummers beating a big drum which was used many years ago to send messages to nearby tribes. I have heard them, and they will be a real educational experience for all Bermudians."

Bermuda gombeys will close the show, and the programme will be repeated the following day, June 23, to accommodate all members of the public, since the Sabbath falls on Saturday and Sunday for different religions. An added feature on Sunday will be the honouring of all St. David's Islanders aged 80 and over, including Cristabelle Pitcher who is nearly 100, and will be present.

Bleechers will be erected at the field, but to accommodate everyone, organisers are requesting the public to bring their own chairs as well. There will be plenty of parking and St. David's Island food available.

"Admission will be a modest $5 for adults and $2 for children to encourage the entire family to come out, as well as our visitors," Mr. Tucker says.

Invited guests will include the Premier and other dignitaries.

On June 24 Tall Oak and native North American Indian Ramona Peters will hold an information-sharing meeting at the St. David's Cricket Club, at which they will educate interested Bermudians on native American history as it relates to Bermuda.

Tall Oak and Ms Peters played a major role in the publication of the book about native North American Indians, 'Five Hundred Nations', and Ms Peters also assisted in the production of a film of the same name.

"All Bermudians can come and ask questions and share in the history of their native American heritage," Mr. Tucker says.

The chairman paid tribute all those who have supported the Festival so enthusiastically, including the Ministries of Cultural Affairs and Youth and Sport, the St. David's Cricket Club, Colonial Insurance and Marsh Global Broking (Bermuda) Ltd.

While here the North American Indians plan to visit specific sites of historical significance, among them Dark Bottom in St. David's.

"This is the area of the children's playground," Mr. Tucker says. "As a result of our investigations it was discovered that many years ago our ancestors used to dance and chant around the campfire at Dark Bottom. In fact, there are a couple of St. David's Islanders who recall those days as children. The group will also visit St. David's lighthouse, the graveyards at the Chapel of Ease and St. Peter's church, and the Deliverance. They are not interested in sightseeing and buying T-shirts. They will be here to be re-educated about the Pequots."

Explaining the North American Indian connection with St. David's Islanders, Mr. Tucker emphasised that the latter are not, and never were, Mohawks, as is popularly believed.

"For many years, St. David's Islanders and Bermudians were under the impression that Mohawks were brought here, but that is a myth. Mohawks were never brought here because, first of all they were too powerful to be enslaved, and secondly they were situated near the middle of America, not on the east coast."

Tracing the arrival of the Pequots, Mr. Tucker says, "In the late 1600s there was a war in New England between the British and the Pequots, as a result of which the British thought they had annihilated the whole tribe because of trading differences, etc. Between the late 1600s and just prior to emancipation in 1834, they shipped hundreds of Pequots to Bermuda, some of whom were enslaved in St. David's. They were kept separate and chained so they couldn't associate.

"When all slaves, including the North American Indians, were set free in 1834 the British soldiers who were stationed here said the Indians acted like savages, and as a result they called them 'Mohawks', and the name stuck. The Archives here and in Rhode Island indicate that the Pequots and other Native Americans from the east coast were brought here, but not Mohawks."

Mr. Tucker says that many Bermudian authors have written about the Pequots, and many St. David's Islanders have spent a great deal of time in the Archives gathering history over the years, so much so that the Minors, Fox, Pitcher and Foggo family trees have been investigated back to 1783.

"The Minors, Foxes, Pitchers, Lambs and Burchalls are all descendan ts of native Americans," Mr. Tucker says. "Because St. David's Island was isolated to a great extent many of them never left the Island, and inter-marriage was very common, so as a result just about all St. David's Islanders are related, and made their living fishing, farming, boating and piloting. My grandmother always said there was only one tree that grew in St. David's but it had many branches. When you do your family tree you go around in a circle because you are all connected."

Arising out of this weekend's festival, Mr. Tucker says the St. David's Island Indian Reconnection committee's ultimate goal is to develop a cultural exchange programme between St. David's Island children and those of the Pequot tribe.

"We intend to sit down with the Department of Education and heads of schools and map out a student exchange programme and keep culture to the forefront," Mr. Tucker says. "Interest has been shown by the Smithsonian Institution, and the history channel has also made inquiries about filming a documentary of the whole festival."

Certainly, interest among Bermudians and others abroad appears to be just as high as it is here.

"People are coming from as far away as California with their families to attend the festival, and phone calls and e-mails are pouring in right, left and centre," Mr. Tucker reports. "The festival is a fantastic opportunity for young and old, Bermudians and visitors alike, to come, see, listen and learn."