The Deerfield Massacre [fiction]

Deerfield Massacre - by Alexander Anderson

This is my Idea, but you can steal it if you want…

THE GERM: I was back in Western Massachusetts, visiting my Mom. She and I and my partner took a trip to Greenfield to see some sights along the Mohawk Trail. On our way to Yankee Candle, we passed by Old Deerfield and drove around a little.

The town’s claim to fame is that in 1704, the French, with their Native allies, attacked the English frontier town, killing and capturing most of the town’s residents.

GERMINATION: Imagine an America where the Puritans treated the Algonquin Natives so well, they didn’t side with the French against the English. In that alternate world, the Deerfield Massacre of 1704 never occurred.

In this alternate timeline, the Natives – as a reward for their lack of aggression – are allowed to remain in New England in large numbers, plus they’ve been granted the territory of Maine (now called Wabanaki) as a homeland.

WORKING TITLE: “The Deerfield Massacre”
FORMAT: Novella
GENRE: Alternate History
PREMISE: Native Americans, tired of constant harassment, strike back at their persecutors.
LOCATION: Deerfield, Mass. and the surrounding countryside; backwoods New England and Maine. Modern-times, in an alternative timeline.
TIME: It could be in pre-industrial times, or it could be in the present day
CHARACTERS:

• Racist prep-schoolers;
• Cowardly Natives;
• Ineffectual leaders

FOR STARTERS: Despite their elevated status, Natives are viewed disparagingly by whites, who derisively call them “Nates” and harass them at every turn. Natives won’t fight back, as their minority status means that they’ll eventually lose every fight.

Nowhere is this harassment stronger than when it comes from the students of Deerfield Academy. It’s like the usual Town vs. Gown rivalry, but with more bite and bile on the part of the ‘gownies.’

Whenever their paths cross in nearby Greenfield, the students harass the Natives for being undereducated and having different customs. The Natives have learned to take abuse quietly and not to react. (Their behavior is very much like that of freed slaves in the South.)

Vandalism of Native encampments and businesses is on the rise. Occasionally, the verbal abuse becomes physical. As it escalates, the Natives work even harder to remain calm.

One night, drunken seniors from the Academy abduct and rape a 14-year-old Native girl. She dies from her injuries and, after fruitless talks between Native and White elders, Native youths go on the rampage. They attack the Academy and those in Deerfield who had been defending the student’s brutish behavior.

A couple dozen are killed and a dozen more are abducted. As the Natives’ actions get out of control, they decide to flee to Maine, where they think they can find refuge.

Along the way, one of the kidnappers falls in love with one of the abductees, who eventually decides to stay with him. (This did happen after the actual 1704 abduction flight to Canada.)

FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENT:

How is the abduction resolved? Are some ransomed? Will some die in transit? Will any of them refuse to go back home? (These are all things that happened in the aftermath of the real 1704 attack.)

Also, Would this the beginning of a war with the Natives? Such a war would likely result in the obliteration of the native presence in New England.

NOTE: If you’d like to develop this Idea further, just leave a Comment and claim it.

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