Shanawdithit: a beothuk story

Where did shawnadithit live
How did shawnadithit die
When was nonosabasut born

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Demasduit

Beothuk woman

Demasduit (c. 1796 – January 8, 1820^[3]) was a Beothuk woman, one of the last of her people on Newfoundland.

Biography

Demasduit was born around 1796, near the end of the 18th century. It was once believed that the Beothuk population had been decimated by conflict with European settlers. However, the most reliable research^{[by whom?]} today^[when?] suggests^{[citation needed]} instead that the Beothuk population was very small, between 500 and 1,000 people at the time of European contact, and when European settlers arrived permanently, the Beothuk were cut off from their traditional coastal hunting grounds. Furthermore, there was no one to promote peaceful relations between the Beothuk and the settlers. As Newfoundland's population was small,^[quantify] a missionary effort could not be supported, and the European governments were mainly interested in marine resources, so no agents were appointed to liaise with the native population. Further contributing to the Beothuk's demise was the

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DEMASDUWIT (Shendoreth, Waunathoake, Mary March), one of the last of the Beothuks; b. c. 1796; m. Nonosbawsut, and they had one child, who died as an infant in 1819; d. 8 Jan. 1820 at Bay of Exploits, Nfld.

In September 1818 a small band of Beothuk Indians, not for the first time, pilfered the salmon boat and the equipment and gear of John Peyton Jr at the mouth of the Exploits River on the northeast coast of Newfoundland. The governor, Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Hamilton*, in response to a request from the injured settlers and others, authorized the dispatch of a party to recover the stolen property. The expedition was also intended to act, with unperceived incongruity, on behalf of the British and Newfoundland authorities in still another of the efforts made over a long period to establish friendly relations with the dwindling survivors of the Beothuk people. Its goal was Red Indian Lake, the principal winter quarters of the Beothuks, which had already been the scene of officially sponsored searches by the naval officers John Cartwright

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Shanawdithit

Beothuk woman

Shanawdithit
A beothuk woman (ca. 1841) believed to be Shanawdithit, though possibly a reproduction of a portrait of Demasduit.
Born	Shanawdithit ca. 1801 Newfoundland
Died	June 6, 1829 (aged 27–28) St. John's, Newfoundland
Cause of death	Tuberculosis
Other names	Shawnadithit, Shawnawdithit, Nancy April
Known for	last Beothuk

Shanawdithit (ca. 1801 – June 6, 1829), also noted as Shawnadithit, Shawnawdithit, Nancy April and Nancy Shanawdithit, was the last known living member of the Beothuk people, who inhabited Newfoundland, Canada. Remembered for her contributions to the historical understanding of Beothuk culture, including drawings depicting interactions with European settlers, Shanawdithit died of tuberculosis in St. John's, Newfoundland on June 6, 1829.^[1]

Early life with the Beothuk

Shanawdithit was born near a large lake on the island of Newfoundland in about 1801.^[2]^: 233 At the time the Beothuk population was dw