In 1910, the Edison Company released Ononko’s Vow, an early silent movie filmed on location in Deerfield and Whately, Massachusetts. Herbert S. Streeter of Greenfield wrote the script, which he loosely based on actual events in the early colonial history of Deerfield. The 15-minute film tells the fanciful story of a fictional Native American character Ononko, and his relationship with a settler family, set against the backdrop of two violent encounters involving colonial settlers and Indigenous people. Join us to view a newly digitized version of this almost-forgotten film followed by a panel discussion with Dr. Carolyn Anderson, silent film historian and Professor Emerita of Film and Television at UMass Amherst, and Dr. Margaret Bruchac, Associate Professor of Anthropology, Coordinator of Native American and Indigenous Studies, and Associate Faculty in the Penn Cultural Heritage Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

With live music performed by Jeff Rapsif.

Preregistration required. $10 (free for Historic Deerfield and Whately Historical Society members) Cosponsored by the Whately Historical Society.