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@@ -9,18 +9,17 @@ author: Jacob Signorovitch
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In Weston, Massachusetts, across the Charles River from Brandeis University, an
unusual structure rises among the trees; a forty foot stone tower, complete
with spiral staircase and ramparts, weathered and stained with time, looking
unusual structure rises among the trees; a forty foot stone tower, complete with
spiral staircase and ramparts, weathered and stained with time, looking
distinctly out of place within earshot of I-95. The story of how it came to be
there involves Vikings, a baking soda magnate, the discovery of America, and,
at the center of it all, the city of Norumbega. As one explores the area, the
name comes up again and again: a map will tell you the structure's name is
Norumbega Tower, and running alongside is Norumbega Road. Further south, one
finds a Norumbega Park, and another road called Norumbega Court. This paper
will explore how one man in the late 19th century, Eben Norton Horsford,
brought together two seemingly disconnected ideas into a theory for the
original discovery of America, what motivated him to do so, and what he left
behind.
there involves Vikings, a baking soda magnate, the discovery of America, and, at
the center of it all, the city of Norumbega. As one explores the area, the name
comes up again and again: a map will tell you the structure's name is Norumbega
Tower, and running alongside is Norumbega Road. Further south, one finds a
Norumbega Park, and another road called Norumbega Court. This paper will explore
how one man in the late 19th century, Eben Norton Horsford, combined Norse saga
and a mythical Native American city into a theory for the original discovery of
America, what motivated him to do so, and what he left behind.
The myth of Norumbega originated in the 16th century, during the Age of
Exploration. It was variously a town, city, or country, somewhere along the
@@ -30,25 +29,25 @@ Geography,[@KirsNor98, 34] the myth can be traced back to a conflation of two
separate accounts. The first is that of Giovanni da Verrazzano, a Florentine
explorer under King Francis I of France.[@GreeneLife37, 4-7] He was one of the
first Europeans to explore the area around Narragansett Bay in 1524[@KirsNor98,
36, 39], far distant from where Norumbega would eventual be described. However,
due to geographical ambiguity at the time, his account would later become "at
the heart of the Norumbega legend."[@KirsNor98, 39] He recounted his
experiences in a letter to the king, where he described a pleasant harbor
inhabited by friendly and civil natives.[@KirsNor98, 39] They practiced "more
systematic cultivation [of crops] than the other tribes," and were "very like
the manner of the ancients."[@KirsNor98, 39] In the letter, Giovanni names the
place *refugio*, "on account of its beauty."[@KirsNor98, 39] Civilized
inhabitants became one of the core aspects of the myth, present throughout its
evolution even as its exact location and size varied. The second account is
that of Jean Alfonce de Saintonge, pilot on Jacques Cartier's exploration of
the Penobscot Bay area [@KirsNor98, 41]. Sailing up the Penobscot River, which
he called the *Norenbègue*, he described "a city called *Norombegue* with
clever inhabitants [...] The people use many words which sound like Latin and
worship the sun, and they are fair people and tall."[@KirsNor98, 41] These two
accounts, Giovanni s *refugio* and Saintonge's *Norombegue*, eventually merged
into a single myth, canonized by Gastaldi, of an advanced Native American city
whose manners were closer to those of Europe than their neighbors.[@KirsNor98,
41]
36, 39], and recounted his experiences in a letter to the king. He described a
pleasant harbor inhabited by friendly and civil natives.[@KirsNor98, 39] They
practiced "more systematic cultivation [of crops] than the other tribes," and
were "very like the manner of the ancients [i.e., antiquity]."[@KirsNor98, 39]
In the latter, Giovanni names the place *refugio*, "on account of its
beauty."[@KirsNor98, 39] Despite Narragansett Bay being quite far from where
Norumbega would eventually be described, the Penobscot Bay region of modern day
Maine, geographical ambiguity allowed his account to become "at the heart of the
Norumbega legend."[@KirsNor98, 39] Specifically, the mention of a "more
civilized" tribe of natives would become a core aspect of the mythical city in
all future renditions. The second account is that of Jean Alfonce de Saintonge,
pilot on Jacques Cartier's exploration of the Penobscot Bay area [@KirsNor98,
41]. Sailing up the Penobscot River, which he called the *Norenbègue*, he
described "a city called *Norombegue* with clever inhabitants [...] The people
use many words which sound like Latin and worship the sun, and they are fair
people and tall."[@KirsNor98, 41] These two accounts, Giovanni's *refugio* and
Saintonge's *Norombegue*, eventually merged into a single myth, canonized by
the cartographer Gastaldi, of an advanced Native American city whose manners
were closer to those of Europe than their neighbors.[@KirsNor98, 41]
Eben Norton Horsford was a chemist working in Cambridge, best known for his
invention of modern baking powder.[@JackHors92, 343] In addition to his work,