Opening from On This Site - Native Long Island

Kitchaminchok

A Moriches Island boundary placename appearing in seventeenth-century whaling and estate records, with related forms including Ketchininchoge and Cochiminchoake. Recognized as a sacred Unkechaug drift whaling site, Kitchaminchok served as a key boundary marker where early colonial agreements set a strict price of five English pounds for every harvested whale. Documenting these early commercial transactions reveals how Native peoples attempted to negotiate the aggressive expansion of the European market while trying to maintain access to their traditional coastal resources. Kitchaminchok is the primary recorded placename for Moriches Island at East Moriches. The island is described as lying on the north shore of the Great South Bay, separated from the mainland by a narrow strait, with meadowland and a small pond. Recorded forms include Kitchaminchok, Ketchininchoge, Kitchaminchoke,...