Yawate was the only daughter of Nanapashemet and Squaw Sachem. She married Awassamug, the nephew of a Nipmuc Sachem named Wuttawushan.
They had three sons, and their family members comprised some of the earliest settlers at Natick. They also were known to have aided the English, acting as interpreters, preachers, guides, and spies. Yawate was named Abigail by the English.
When King Philip's War broke out in 1675, the English felt they could no longer trust even the Christian Indians at Natick. Yawate and her family were interned on Deer Island near Boston. It was a horrendous ordeal, with only about 40% surviving the sickness, starvation, and harsh conditions. It was truly one of the darkest chapters in our nation's history.
Yawate lived through vicious attacks by enemies that killed her father. She made it through years of devastating plagues that claimed the lives of two of her brothers. She witnessed the desolation of entire villages of her people. She watched her land get sold piece by piece. She endured the horrific conditions of brutal internment. She was the last of Squaw Sachem's direct family to survive.
Yawate sat at her brother Wenepoykin's side at Natick as he passed from this Earth in 1684. Within two years Yawate would join him.