In the Miery Swamp: Metacomet and Memory

Authors

Allison Rose, Kennesaw State UniversityFollow
Marianne HoldzkomFollow

Name of Faculty Sponsor

Dr. Marianne Holdzkom

Faculty Sponsor Email

mholdzko@kennesaw.edu

Author Bio(s)

Allison Rose is the Coordinator of Events and Auxiliary Services at the College of Coastal Georgia, where she supports campus programming and community engagement. She holds a BA in History with a minor in Art History from Kennesaw State University and brings a decade of museum experience to her work in higher education. Her background in public history continues to shape her interest in how people connect with stories, spaces, and historical objects. Allison has presented her research at the Biennial Phi Alpha Theta Convention in Washington, D.C., and at the Symposium of Undergraduate Research at Mississippi State University.

Publication Date

3-2026

Use of AI Disclaimer

no

Abstract

Abstract for “In the Miery Swamp: Metacomet and Memory”, written by Allison Rose and sponsored by Dr. Marianne Holdzkom

Memorials have become omnipresent ties to our communal past. Plaques and dedications materialize in our town squares. Statues loom over our city parks. Monuments tower over our cemeteries. A large issue facing public historians today is the disconnect between the original intent of public memorials and the collective representation of diverse histories. “In the Miery Swamp: Metacomet and Memory” addresses how interactions with the public alter and transform four public memorials. Through a chronological and historical analysis of four monuments to Metacomet’s War, the bloodiest war in Colonial American history, “In the Miery Swamp: Metacomet and Memory” highlights integral questions about the war’s origins, its purpose, and its lasting effect on our cultural memory. The bronze statue of “Massasoit” on Cole’s Hill in Plymouth enables a detailed look at the Wampanoag people’s relationship to the colonists when Metacomet’s father was sachem, and later on when Metacomet took over. Metacomet’s Plaque in Plymouth Town Square testifies to the indigenous people’s motivations for the war. The Great Swamp Fight Monument in Rhode Island was erected in 1906 to enforce an official ideology of national identity, yet over time it has also been the most transformed by the public. The battle which the monument harkens back to epitomizes the escalation of violence and brutality during Metacomet’s War. The Cold Springs Monument is a small stone placed on the site where Metacomet was at long last hunted down and dismembered by Benjamin Church’s raiding party. His death effectively ended the vicious, retaliatory conflict. Each monument acts as a doorway into the past as intended at the time of its dedication. They hold tight to the main concern of Metacomet’s War, the quest for cultural preservation. Yet as our understanding of history expands to become more inclusive of disenfranchised people, so too do the ways in which the public interacts and interprets these monuments. By delving into their histories and exploring the ways the public interacts with these four spaces, we can realize that there is a potential to capitalize on the shifting historiographies of these monuments and broaden the sense of our collective cultural identity.