Linda Coombs

Linda Jeffers Coombs is an author and historian from the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah). Coombs is the former program director of the Aquinnah Cultural Center.

Career
Coombs began a museum career in 1974, interning at the Boston Children's Museum as part of its Native American Program. She and her peers, including Narragansett elder Paulla Dove Jennings, wrote children's books for the museum, illustrating Native American culture from a Native American perspective. Coombs later worked for nearly three decades with the Wampanoag Indigenous Program at Plimoth Plantation, including 15 years as the program's associate director. In that capacity, she wrote a number of essays documenting colonial history from a Native American perspective, and often spoke publicly about the need for more accurate representations of colonial events including the first Thanksgiving  and Columbus Day.

Coombs serves as program director of the Aquinnah Cultural Center, continuing to educate the public about Wampanoag history, culture, and other contributions. Valued for her expertise in regional Native American history, Coombs is a frequent consultant on scholarly and educational projects.

Born and raised in Martha's Vineyard, Coombs lives with her family in the Wampanoag Community in Mashpee on Cape Cod.

Publications

 * "A Wampanoag Perspective on Colonial House."Plimoth Life, v.3 no. 1, 2004: 24-28.
 * "Hobbamock’s Homesite." Thanks, But No Thanks: Mirroring the Myth: Native Perspectives on Thanksgiving. Plymouth, MA: Wampanoag Indian Program. September 9, 2000: 2-3.
 * "Holistic History." Plimoth Life 1(2) 2002:12-15.
 * "Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community and War by Nathaniel Philbrick [review]." ''" Cultural Survival Quarterly, Spring 2007.
 * "New Woodland Path Makes Inroads at Wampanoag Homesite." Plimoth Life, v. 5 no. 1, 2006: 20.
 * Powwow. Modern Curriculum Press, 1992.
 * "Wampanoag Foodways in the 17th Century." Plimoth Life 2005: 13-19