Framingham To Keep 'Indian' Names In Street Signs, Install Plaque

FRAMINGHAM, MA—When a student from a Framingham school raised the issue of changing some of the city's street sign names because they might be offense, City Councilors took up the issue. The student suggested replacing the word "Indian Head" on these signs with "Algonquin."

At Tuesday night's meeting, councilors voted instead of changing the street names to install a plaque that honors Native American history in the Indian Head Heights neighborhood, reports the MetroWest Daily News. Councilors voted unanimously to authorize the Historical Commission's plan to create the plaque.

The name Indian Head as written in "The Hills of Framingham" by John M. Merriam, and is on record as early as 1696, indicates early evidence of Indian occupation, according to Ruthann Tomassini from the Framingham History Center research department.

She told Patch that the the hill is associated with the Upanbohqueen, commonly known as "old Jacob." Old Jacob was one of John Elliot's first converts and was associated with the praying Indians from 1646 until his death in his '90s.

"The assumption is that a developer of the area recognized the associated information and chose the name," said Tomassini. "Head is also a geological definition of a raised or flat elevated prominence."

Photo via Google maps