Cantauncack was once a thriving town in the Powhatan chiefdom. A recently awarded state grant will help explore this Native American settlement in the Hayes area.

The Cantauncack Archeological Survey received a $136,497 grant from the Department of Historic Resources and the Virginia Board of Historic Resources, one of nine awarded statewide from the first round of the 2023 Virginia Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Historic Preservation Grant Program.

This funded amount is expected to support the first phase of a two-phase project exploring the site.

The leads for this project will be Flagler College professor Jessi Jenkins and William and Mary professor Martin Gallivan, who will be working in close collaboration with contemporary Virginia Indian communities through an advisory board and internships for community members. They also will be working alongside other departments at William and Mary, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, as well as the Department of Hist...