Crafting a Legacy Penobscot father, son continue tradition of root clubs

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Once used as weapons of war, root clubs have become a treasured tradition for a father and son of the Penobscot Indian Nation. In the late 1600s, the clubs were used in hand-to-hand combat, but they are now considered works of art.

Stan Neptune of the Penobscot Nation learned to carve root clubs nearly 30 years ago. His teacher Senabeh Francis was the last of the Penobscot Medicine Men. Though Francis died in 1980, Neptune is making sure the tradition of carving is carried on. He taught his son, Jo “Hugga” Dana, the craft and both men make a living by selling their carved products.

“The tradition goes back 500 years,” Neptune said. “I don’t know how many other people can say that.”

Neptune will share what he has learned with visitors during a demonstration at the National Folk Festival from 4 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24. In addition to selling his work, Neptune hopes to give people an appreciation for the history and art that go into each club. Dana also will be at the festival to demonstrate this longtime tradition with his father.

“We’re always willing to see more clubs that we haven’t seen yet,” said Neptune, who hopes others who own clubs will come forward and show him their works.

Though all Wabanaki tribes used to carve root clubs, the Penobscot are the only people who have continued the custom in the traditional manner. There is still one Passamaquoddy man who carves clubs, but he works with poplar instead of the traditional birch, according to Neptune.

In the early 1970s, Neptune returned to Indian Island after serving two years in the Army and wanted to learn more about his native traditions and culture.

“In the early ’70s, there was a movement among native people to return to the traditional ways of our ancestors,” he said. Neptune began traveling to native conferences and spiritual gatherings all over the Northeast.

“That’s when I started to visit Francis, who was the master root-club carver at that time,” Neptune said.

Francis lived in a 12-foot-by-12-foot shack on Indian Island, which he called his “beaver hut.” After about a month, the elder offered to teach Neptune to carve root clubs and walking sticks.

Neptune later taught his son how to carve. At the age of 15, Dana carved his first walking stick and three years later made his first root club. For Dana, carving is a form of expression.

“I’m a pretty quiet, laid-back person,” the 26-year-old said. “[Carving is] a way I can express myself.” Dana explained that he’s always been an artist – drawing and painting ever since he can remember.

Now, the livelihood of both men depends on their craft. They work from their homes year-round, carving and selling root clubs, hiking and walking sticks, canes and, every now and then, a totem pole.

The cost of a carved piece is directly related to the amount of time it takes to make. A basic root club can go for $250, while a more ornately carved and decorated club will sell for closer to $1,500. A typical club will range in size from 28 to 36 inches.

Waist-high walking sticks start at $50 and the more elaborately carved can bring in about $200. Hiking sticks are normally about shoulder height and cost between $15 and $20.

No matter how basic the construction, both father and son agree you can’t force yourself to finish a piece.

“I never do one piece straight-through,” Neptune said, “Ideas evolve as you work.” He explained that it might take several weeks to complete a piece, even if only eight or 10 hours of actual carving goes into it.

Root clubs are made from the entire root system of white or gray birch saplings.

“It takes some doing to get those out,” Neptune said. The entire root system must be exposed. Then the tree is cut about four feet up from the base. The roots are sawed off and then all excess dirt is removed before the feeder roots are cut to prepare the birch for carving.

Father and son have developed their own unique styles of chip carving and use various types of chisels and knives to complete the job. Dana explained that “chip carving doesn’t just make impressions, pieces of wood are removed.”

In the past, Neptune has given carving and root club presentations throughout the United States and Canada. He and Dana also have clubs on display at Abbe Museum’s Wabanaki Gallery in Bar Harbor.

In the last seven years, Neptune has located more than 500 Wabanaki root clubs of various ages with the help of Joan Lester, a professor at Tufts University in Medford, Mass.

Their research began in 1995 and indicates that the clubs started out as weapons and their use continued even after the introduction of muskets and rifles; however, the club’s purpose has changed over time. According to Neptune, Lester said what they are doing is “primary research” since no books have ever been written about root clubs. This makes the task even more difficult.

The 1600-period clubs were very basic with little to no carving on the handle or burl. The root tips were pointed, making them excellent weapons.

In the mid-1600s to early 1800s, the clubs were no longer used solely in combat. Tribe members began using them for ceremonial purposes and the style became more decoratively carved, often times with spirit faces carved into the burl. These faces were neither animal nor human, but belonged to the “spirits of the woods,” Neptune said. “There was even a war club dance.” Basket dyes made from berries and other natural products were used to add color to the root clubs of the late 1800s.

By the 19th century, the clubs were sold to early tourists called rusticators. These visitors would come to Maine to hunt and fish and were drawn to the carvings created by their Indian guides, according to Neptune. Catering to the tastes of rusticators, Wabanaki carvers began to shape human faces into the burls.

Basket dyes were traded for more vibrant paints and wood stains. At the end of the 19th century, tourists’ desires to see the stereotypical American Indian displayed in the root clubs changed the design once again. Indian faces complete with braids, face paint and traditional western style headdresses were carved into the burls and roots.

Looking at the collection of clubs on his wall, Neptune said, “A lot of these clubs have stories behind them.” Especially the ones carved by Francis, and the club that was found just a short time ago in Neptune’s attic.

After years of researching clubs that belong to other people, a worker who was installing insulation found one in the Penobscot man’s attic floorboards. Neptune is still in the process of investigating the find, which has several clues carved into its handle, including the location of Cordaville, Mass., along with several symbols used by the Masons.

“Some of these clubs have a story just unto themselves,” he said as he touched the attic treasure.

It is often difficult to track the origin of a root club, since their creators did not sign most of them. This is one reason Neptune and Dana have their own signatures, which they add to each piece they carve. Neptune’s is the sign of the eel, while Dana’s is a lightning bolt.

Neptune often groups clubs to examine similarities in style. He is then able to determine which clubs were created by a single carver.

“We can see the hand of the artists in a number of these clubs,” he said.

A few of the clubs Neptune now has hanging in his house were given to him by people who heard about his research. He said most of the people who have returned them feel that “the clubs belong to the people of the Penobscot Nation.”

“A lot of these old pieces still have the spirit in them,” he said.

For Neptune, the purpose of root clubs has been altered again as American society takes more of an interest in learning about its native traditions. By participating as demonstrators at the National Folk Festival, Neptune said he and his son hope to give people “an appreciation for the artwork that these root clubs are … and information about the history of the people as well.”

He was once asked how he chose to be a root club carver and simply replied, “I didn’t choose to be a root club carver,” he said. “It chose me, or I should say that Senabeh chose me.”

For more information about his products, Neptune can be reached at P.O. Box 128, Old Town 04468 or by calling 827-2847.