Occohannock Indians

The Occohannock Indians, one of the important Virginia Indian groups on the Eastern Shore, were composed of several tribes including the Onancock, Machipongo, Metomkin, Chincoteague, Kegotank, Pungoteague, Chesconessex, and Nandua. Capt. John Smith visited them in 1608, but except for trading they had little contact with the English until the 1620s. The titular leader of the Occohannock and Accomac Indians in the 1620s was Esmy Shichans, also known as the "Laughing King." By the 1670s, the Occohannocks held only token areas in their former tribal territories. In the latter part of the 17th century, they moved back and forth between here and the large reservation of their linguistic relatives, the Pocomoke, in Maryland