lydia Backus

About Nopee Little D Hyanno (No-Pee)

http://www.murrah.com/gen/hyanno .htm

Mary Hyanno, Wampanoag Princess?

NOTE: The purpose of this article is to summarize information about Mary Hyanno that circulates among genealogists. All information about Mary Hyanno--her life, ancestry and even existence--should be viewed as legend and not as proven fact. The information in this article comes from many informal sources and should not be attributed any researcher.

Mary Hyanno, known as "Litttle Dove", is said to have married early Plymouth settler Augustine Bearse. Mary was the daughter of John Hyanno, who was born in 1595 at the Mattachee Village at what is now Barnstable, Massachusetts, and Mary No-Pee, who was born at Gays Head on Martha's Vineyard and was the daughter of No-Took-Seet. John was the son of Iyannough, the sachem of the Mattachee village of Wampanoags of Cape Cod, and Princess Canonicus. He died after 1680 on Cape Cod. Princess Canonicus was the daughter of Canochet (Chief) Canonicus and Posh-Pw. Canochet Canonicus was the son of Wessonsuoum and Keshechoo. Wessonsuoum was the son of Chief Tashtassuck, who was born before 1520.

Mary Hyanno is said to have been of fair complexion and red hair. The Wampanoags were often referred to as "white Indians" due to their light skin and are thought by some to have descended from Viking explorers. This assertion is very controversial. There indeed was an Iyannough, and Hyannis, Massachusetts is named for him.

The Bearse/Hyanno marriage entered the written record via a document filed in the 1930's by Franklin Ele-watum Bearse, a Scaticoke and Eastern Indian, in an attempt to obtain benefits as an Indian from the State of Connecticut. Mr. Bearse's claims are analyzed in a article by Jacobus entitled "Austin Bearse and His Alleged Indian Connectionis" in THE AMERICAN GENEALOGIST published about 1936. Mr. Jacobus does not accept the Franklin Bearse story and endeavored to disprove it. However, family traditions of the Hyanno marriage exist to this day in other branches of the Bearse family. These traditions do not appear to have been derived from Franklin Bearse.

The Cornwall family also claims Mary Hyanno as an ancestor.