Allen Hazard

Born on the Narragansett reservation in Charlestown, Rhode Island, Allen has been making wampum for over thirty years. He acquired his skills from his mother Sarah (Fry) Hazard and her sister Laura (Fry) Mars, both of whom made regalia and did fine beadwork. “Being able to watch them do needle point and beadwork in my childhood gave me the inspiration to do what I do with wampum today.” Other influences were community elder Russell Spears, a stone mason and bead worker, and Alan’s uncle Ken Mars, a master carpenter. Allen also observed his uncle Harold Fry work with the quahog clam shell that becomes wampum. He would break off the most purple part of that shell, rub it on a smooth stone, drill it and ready it for a nice necklace or regalia. “As a young boy I saw everyone at the powwow dance in their finest regalia, hanging with wampum shells, and of course clam chowder was always an end product also.” Allen's jewelry - including wampum beads, necklaces, and belts - is made in a traditional style so that it can be worn with traditional Eastern Woodland regalia. He has demonstrated at many southern New England powwows. He sells his wampum designs at the Pequot Mashantucket Pequot Museum and in his shop, The Purple Shell, in Charlestown, Rhode Island.