What happened to the Wampanoag who lived where the English built their town?
The English built their town in 1620 on the site of an important Wampanoag town called Patuxet. From 1616-1618, many of the Wampanoag people who lived in Patuxet died from a plague that was probably carried by European fishermen and traders. Any survivors of the sickness most likely left Patuxet for other villages. This devastating event made it easy for the English to lay claim to this Wampanoag land.
