On this day in 1798, a member of the Pequot tribe named William Apess was born in Colrain, a village in western Massachusetts. Although his childhood was marked by poverty and abuse, he learned to read and write. After converting to Christianity, Apess became a traveling preacher. He sought to convert other Native Americans to Christianity and to convince white people to recognize his people as equal members of the family of God. In his thirties, he moved to Cape Cod, where he helped the Mashpee tribe regain a measure of self-government. William Apess published five books, including an autobiography. He disappeared from the historical record until his obituary was published in 1839 in a New York paper. Fortunately, his published works have allowed his story to survive in his own words.