The Mohawk Indians 0791016676, 9780791016671

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THE JUNIOR LIBRARY OF AMERICAN INDIANS

THE

\

MOHAWK INDIANS

Janet ^

Hubbard-Brown

Digitized by the Internet Archive in

2011

http://www.archive.org/details/mohawkindiansOOhubb

SEVCLL ELEM. LIBRARY

973. 0-i?

HU

The Hohawk Indians.

30395005005^99

973.049 HU

Hubbard-Brown, Janet.

The Mohawk Indians

30395005005499 $14. 95 DATE

J

$tW£LL ELEMENTARY LIBRARY

BAKER a TAYLOR

THE

MOHAWK INDIANS

THE JUNIOR LIBRARY OF AMERICAN INDIANS

THE

MOHAWK INDIANS

Jonet Hubbord-Broiun

^*^^EU ELEMENTARY

UBRAPv

CHELSEA HOUSE PUBLISHERS Seic

"t'ork

Philadelphia

Thc MohawR

FRONTISPIECE

chief

Joseph Brant.

CHAPTER TITLE ORNAMENT A depiciion of 3 tattoo representing tlie Turtle Clan; taken from an 18th-century French illustration,

Chelsea House Publishers Richard Rennert

Editorial Director

Executive Managing Editor Karyn Gullen Executive Editor Sean Dolan Copy Chief Robin Jannes

Browne

Adrian G. Allen

Picture Editor

Art Director Robert Mitchell Manufacturing Director Gerald Le\'ine Systems Manager Lindsey Otiman Production Coordinator Marie Claire Cebrian-L'me

The Junior Library of American Indians Senior Editor Sean Dolan Staff for

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

Copy Editor Danielle Janusz Editorial Assistants

Nicole Greenblatt,

Jo\'

Sanchez

Assistant designer John Infantino Picture Researcher

Lisa Kirchner

Cover Illustrator Vilma © 1993 Book Co. All

Ortiz

Chelsea House Publishers, a dMsion of Main

CopNTight

b\'

Line

rights reserved. Printed

and bound

in

.Mexico.

35798642 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Pubiication Data

Hubbard-Brown. Janet.

The Mohawk indians/by Janet Hubbard-Brown. p. cm. — (The Junior Library' of American Indians) Includes bibliographical references and index. Summary: Examines the histor\-. culture, and dail\-

life

of the

Mohawk

Indians.

1.

ISBN 0-791

0-1

ISBN 0-79

O-

667-6

99 -8 (pbk Mohawk Indians— Ju\enile 1

1

of North America.)

1

)

l.

Title,

ll

literature. |1.

Series.

Mohawk

Indians.

2.

Indians

93-18247

E99.M8H82 1993

CIP

973'. 04975— dc20

AC

CONTENTS CHAPTER 1

The

Fall

CHAPTER

from Sky World

2

The People CHAPTER

One

of the Place of Flint

15

3

Heart,

CHAPTER

7

One Mind, One Law

25

4

Broken Dreams

33

PICTURE ESSAY

Beadvvork and Basketry CHAPTER

4i

5

The Mohawks and

the

American

57

Revolution CHAPTER

O

The Mohawks

in the

67

20th Century

Chronology

76

Glossary

77

Index

78

iCYA "">,',

bat the settlers

who overran their homelands,

end of the 1700s the Mohawks could resist no longer, and their nation was but

b>'

the

divided forexer. Toda\'. the

Mohawks

live in

eastern

New

York State and the prox'ince of Ontario in Canada. Though man\' non-Indians who came into contact with them oxer the x'ears remarked on their kindness and humanity,

became known for their fierceness as warriors, and much of their historx' since the\' also

the

arrix'al

of white settlers

their struggle to

traditions.

a

has consisted of

hold on to their land and

But before

that,

the

Mohawk knew

more secure existence as

the Kanien-

kehaka, the People of the Place of

Flint, .^v

ft

nim

ii

'

i

**^

Mohawk Luomen prepare food. Mohaivk women played a central role

Mohawk

society

were referred

to

in

and as the

"mothers of the nation"

CHAPTER

The People

of

the Place of Flint 1 he historx' of the

Mohawks

in

the north-

eastern part of the United States has been

more than 3.000 xears. ancient ancestors were hunters and traced back erers their

who mo\'ed animal

pre\'.

often

in

Their gath-

order to follow

The\' probabK' migrated to

New

York between 700 b.c. and 1200 B.C. Around lOOO b.c. the\- began developing a central base area where they northeastern

1

li\'ed

between hunting and

the>'

traded with people from

continent.

fishing trips, all

and

o\'er the

Among some of the items found at

once inhabited b\' these ancient Indians of what came to be known as the Early Woodland Period of the Indian peoples the sites

15

16

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

conch shells from the Gulf of Mexico, copper from Lake Superior, silver from Ontario, and Canadian grizzlybear teeth from the Rocky Mountains. The Middle Woodland Period began around a.d. 200. The peoples began to build larger, more permanent villages near rivers. Individual houses were made from earth and wood and were big enough for several families to live in. As travel through the dense of the Northeast are

woods

of their

homieland

was

often

difficult

on canoes for transportation along the many rivers and lakes of the region. They continued to hunt game and gather wild plants, but they also began to cultivate their own sources of food, mainly by growing corn. The original Native American corn planters were the people of and dangerous, the Indians

relied

Central America; the Indians of the Northeast

probably learned about corn through trade contacts with Native American people farther west.

More changes occurred in the Late Woodland Period, which lasted from a.d. lOOO to 1300. The Indian peoples now tended to build their villages on hilltops rather than rivers, probably because hilltop locations were easier to defend from attack. Most hilltop villages were surrounded by palisodes

—

walls of long poles built for defense. At settlements, ditches

some

were dug outside the

THE PEOPLE OF THE PLACE OF FLINT

17

palisades for additional protection, and barricades

were erected

viously, warfare

inside the walls. Ob-

was not unknown to the Late

Woodlands peoples. The Iroquoian tradition began around ad. 1300. The Iroquois were several different groups of people, separated geographically, who spoke similar languages and had social

customs and religious beliefs in common. Their homes, called longhouses, were large, rectangular structures with doors at each end. They were made of wooden poles covered with elm bark. Inside was a central row of hearths for cooking and heating. As

many

as 10 families lived together, sharing

the hearths but maintaining separate living areas.

The

Iroquois built stronger palisades

than their ancestors had, which suggests that

warfare had intensified. Constant fighting

seems also to have

interfered with the opera-

network that had linked the various Native American peoples for so long. This is also the period when the Kanienkehaka. or the Mohawks, formed their own nation. Kanienkehaka means "People of tion of the intercontinental trade

the Place of

used

b\'

start fires

Flint." Flint is

the

a hard kind of stone

Mohawks and

other Indians to

and as arrowheads.

The Mohawks lived in three located on the south side of

large villages

the

Mohawk

— 18

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

now

River, near

what

New

state. Villages

York

hilltops close to

is

tiie city

of

Albany

in

were located on the lakes and rivers that

provided the major routes of travel. Small villages contained about 30 longhouses, but

ones held as many as lOO. A typical house contained a central row of four to five hearths. Two families usually shared a larger

hearth. Platforms built along the inner walls

were used sleeping

for seating

during the day and

at night.

Women were

highly valued

Mohawk society. Because ers of

life,

members

of

they were the giv-

they were often referred to as the

"mothers of the nation," and the

Mohawks be-

ago a female god had given corn, beans, and squash to the people. Because women performed the farm work, they were considered the owners of their families' fields, and they were also in charge of the distribution of food. When a man and a woman married, food was exchanged between their families as a symbol of the mutual cooperation that a married couple and the entire community needed in order to prosper. Each person in the community was conlieved that long

member of his or her mother's clan. Mohawk clans were named after animals sidered a

the Bear, the Wolf, ple of the other.

same

and the

Turtle.

Two

peo-

clan could not marry each

A typical household was headed by an

THE PEOPLE OF THE PLACE OF FLLXT

elder

woman and

19

included her daughters

and the younger women's husbands and children. Sons lived with their mothers until they married.

The Mohawk nation was divided sections, or moieties.

A

moiety

is

into

two

a grouping

The Wolf and Turtle clans made up one moiety, and the Bear clan formed the of clans.

other.

Besides farming, Mohawk women gathered fruits, nuts, and wild potatoes. In the early spring, the>' collected sap from maple trees, which the\' used to sweeten tea and dishes made from corn. Sometimes men and women from all three clans organized deer hunts, during which the>' could catch and kill as man\' as 100 animals. Mohawk men prox'ided food for the community b\' hunting elk. deer, moose, bear, beaver, partridge, and wild

turke\'.

They

used bows and arrows for hunting, wooden traps to capture deer, and spears and nets to catch birds and fish. Mohawk life was not all work and no play. The Mohawks especialK' liked to pla\' a game

known as lacrosse. Another pastime, called snow snakes, was popular in winter. A snow snake was a long pole made that toda\'

is

of polished hickor>'

one inch

at

wood,

it

measured about

the top, gradualK' narrowing to

one-half inch at the bottom,

and was about

20

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

seven feet long. The snow snake was thrown so that slid along packed snow. The five to

it

object of the

snake

to

make

the

snow

travel the farthest distance.

Mohawk and

game was

life

rituals.

common

to

was

with ceremonies

filled

There were three basic themes all the rituals: renewal of life and

health, giving thanks to the natural

and super-

and death rites that recognized the ties between the living and the dead. Many of the ceremonies were organized around a yearly cycle of activities, based on the phases of the moon. Midiuinter natural or spirit worlds,

was considered the

turning point of the year.

occurred five nights following the appearance of a new moon after the winter solstice, which usually falls on or around It

December

22.

men ploying o gome of snow snakes. Iroquois

Tills

Midwinter marked the end of one year and the beginning of the next.

It

lasted nine days.

(yame of ^noi//^na/S9

droLuing luos done

by o Seneco mon, Jesse Cornplonter.

in

1903.

THE PEOPLE OF THE PLACE OF FLINT

2

1

were performed eacii da>'. On the first da\'. a pure-wiiite dog was strangled and then burned. The smoke from Certain rites

and

rituals

the burning carcass

was

thought to carry

Then messengers, called the Uncles, went through each house in a Mohawk village to announce people's

messages

to the spirits.

the start of midwinter. While inside, a mes-

senger took a large wooden paddle and stirred the ashes in e\'er\' hearth. This rite represented the renewal of the community and the awakening of life forces for the coming year.

The Mohawks believed

saw

life

forces

in

many

in

a religion that

forms. These ani-

mals, objects, or forces had a certain

power

Because life forces could affect humans, people had to treat everything with care and respect. Certain people in the community had special abilities to use these powers to help others, while others — witches — had powers that could be used to harm others. Witches might put dangerous potions into someone's food or drink, called orendo (o-REN-da).

or transform themselves into animals so they

could wander near

their victims

without

arousing suspicion.

Dreams were extremely important to the Mohawks, who believed that they expressed a person's innermost thoughts and desires.

The Mohawks believed

that illness

could oc-

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

22

dreams were not realized and expressed. Everyone in tiie community was expected to help a dreamer cur

the desires

if

fulfill

in

one's

his or her wish. For

example,

if

a per-

son dreamed about visiting someone, then would be important to make that happen, if a dream was difficult to understand, the dreamer consulted people who had special powers it

to discover a

dreams

dream's hidden meaning. The

of the

Mohawk bound

the people

together.

During midwinter, several da>'s were spent

and fulfilling people's dreams. Dreamers would go from house to house asking others to guess their dreams. They gave hints or told riddles about things that had appeared in a particular dream. The guesser would give to the dreamer an object that she or he believed was seen in the interpreting

dream.

When someone

object, the

dreamer kept

others to their owners.

offered the correct it

and returned

all

The dream-guessing

was a kind of storytelling that provided the Mohawks with entertainment during the long. homeland. White and purple beads called wampum played an important part in Mohawk society. Wampum was made from clam shells that came from present-day Long Island and New cold winters

Jersey.

made

The into

in their

were cut into pieces and small beads that were strung shells

THE PEOPLE OF THE PLACE OF FLINT

together and

made

23

into belts. Different pat-

messages. The pictures in the belt helped people remember important agreements or ex'ents in histor\'. Wampum was used at man\' special events. The terns

gave

stor\' of

different

a special e\'ent

wampum" and

was

"talked into the

thereby preserx'ed

The Mohawks

liked to

a

tell

forex'er.

stor\' that

il-

wampum in their culture. Once, the Mohawks captured a \'oung man of the Wampanoag nation, with whom they were at war. He was lustrated the symbolic importance of

carefulK'

cape.

guarded so

One

day, a

that

he would not

Mohawk

ning into the village with the

hunter

came

esrun-

news that he had

covered with wampum beads. A band of hunters rushed out to tr\' to capture this wonderful bird. None of them was successful. FinalK', the >'oung captive asked if he could tr\'. The chief gave his permission, though the warriors were angr>' that he said yes. The box's arrow pierced the bird's heart

seen a

bird

on the

first tr\'.

The

bo\' married the chiefs

daughter, and with the marriage

between the two

"Wampum

nations.

shall bring

came peace

The

bo\' said,

and bind peace and

shall take the place of blood."

/^

it

A

section of on impor-

jant Iroquois belt

Luampun^

known as

To-ta- da-ho.

of Lchite

the

The

series

diamonds

at the center of the belt

symbolizes the binding together of the Five

3 Heart,

CHAPTER

Sat ions into the Iroquois Confederacy.

One One Mind, One Law

/\s a people,

the

Mohawks

stressed friend-

and consideration of others. These principles were obvious in the way they shared their food or goods with liness,

generosity,

others, the

times of

way the\' comforted each other in

crisis,

should respect

all

their belief that

people

others' rights. Their highest

was unity, or many acting as which became the basis for the system

cultural value

one,

and

26

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

government the Mohawks helped create, which enabled the separate Iroquois nations of

to unite. Their

Mind,

motto was One Heart, One

One Law.

This had not always been the case.

The

iroquoian nations fought often with each other. In the 1300s or 1400s,

two chiefs who

had been adopted from other tribes b\' the Mohawks were determined to stop the fighting. Hiawatha (hi-ya-WA-ta) and Deganawida (de-ga-na-WEE-da) wanted to create a confederacy that would unite all five nations in a great peace. The confederacy would be made up of the Mohawks, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Cayugas, and the Senecas. The story of Deganawida, the Peacemaker, has been handed down from generation to generation among the Mohawks. His mother had a dream that her son would be a messenger of the Creator and that he would bring peace to the people on earth. When Deganawida became a man, he knew that his purpose in life was to be a peacemaker, and he set off to create peace among warring nations. He met some evil people along the way and helped them to change. He finally

Mohawk nation. When Deganawida gave the Mohawks his reached the

message

village of the

of peace, they said that before they

could believe him they must put him to a

test.

ONE HEART, ONE MIND, ONE LAW

27

He climbed to the top of a tree next to a waterfall. The warriors cut clown the tree, and Deganawida fell over the cliff into the water and was carried o\'er the falls. They thought he was dead. The next day some children

came across a man sitting next to his fire. was the Peacemaker, and the Mohawks It

were now ready In the

a

to

accept his message.

meantime, a

member

of the

trying to teach his

man named

Onondaga

Hiawatha,

nation,

was

people about peace and

no one seemed to be interested. Then a great dreamer dreamed that Hiawatha would meet a traveling man and go with him to Mohawk territory. Someone began to use witchcraft against Hiawatha in order to force him to follow his dream: all of his seven daughters died one b>' one of unity, but

mysterious causes. Hiawatha's great that he

had

grief

was so

to leave.

Mohawk

Deganawida and Hiawatha met. The Peacemaker asked Hiawatha if he had plenty of shells. Hiawatha had gathered man\' shells from the bottom Finally, at

a

\1llage.

of a lake. With 15 strings of

wampum,

the

Peacemaker helped to clear Hiawatha's mind of grief. The two men then set out together to create peace among the Iroquois nations. Deganawida traveled to the \'arious nations to ask for their consent to form the

28

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

ONE HEART. ONE MIND. ONE LAW

An

18th-century French

droicing of a tattooed

MohOLck man. The

turtle

on the man's thigh probably indicates that the

man was

a

member

of the Turtle clan.

confederac>'.

The leader

of the

29

Onondaga,

Thadodaho (ta-do-DA-ho), at first said no, but once he met Deganawida, he agreed, but he wanted his nation to be "first among equals." The other Iroquois peoples agreed, and the

was (Under a federal government, a number

world's born.

first

federal-style gox'ernment

of individual entities

States ing

—such as the 50 United

—agree to join

some

of their

together

powers

b\'

surrender-

to a central

govern-

ment.) Each Iroquois nation remained independent, but the Fi\'e Nations agreed to decide important issues together in a Grand Council.

The SN'mbol

was

a great longhouse that

east to west.

was

in

Confederacy stretched from

of the Iroquois

Because the Onondaga nation

the center of Iroquois territory,

councils were alwa\'s held there, and the

Onondagas were

gi\'en the privilege of an-

nouncing council meetings. It was their duty to keep the council fire burning, and in the council longhouse the Onondagas therefore

became

the

"fire

The Mohawks the Eastern Door

keepers."

were called the Keepers of because they were located in the easternmost part of the Iroquois nation. The Senecas were the Keepers of the Western Door because they lived in the westernmost part of the Iroquois nation.

30

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

were 50 hereditary chiefs among the Iroquois Confederacy, most of them with a title or name that was passed on OriginalK'. there

to

man of death. Two

another

same

the

clan after the

were never passed on — those belonging to Deganawida and Hiawatha. The chiefs were chosen by elder women of their clan and were expected to be intelligent, generous, and of good judgment. Meetings were held at least once a year, but the chiefs could meet whenever they felt the need. There were war chiefs as well as peace chiefs. The job of the war chiefs was to discuss and plan militar>' expeditions. Though they could speak at conchiefs

federacy meetings, in

of the

the\'

titles

could not participate

decision making.

The confederacy council could take no action unless everyone was in agreement. The Onondagas always announced the topic of discussion and passed on to the Mohawks for their thoughts, who in turn passed on to the Seneca chiefs. The Senecas passed back to the Mohawks, who announced the combined decision of the Mohawks and the Senecas. (The Mohawks, the Senecas, and the Onondagas made up one moiety of the it

it

it

Five Nations of the Iroquois, while the Ca-

yugas and the Oneidas made up the other. The representatives of the two moieties al-

ONE HEART, ONE MIND. ONE LAW

ways fire.)

sat

Next,

31

on opposite sides of the council the Oneidas and the Cayugas dis-

cussed the matter. The>' declared their decision to a Mohawk chief, who announced the results to the Onondagas. If the Onondagas agreed, the decision was unanimous. If e\'en one person disagreed, the matter was set aside, and the council fire was cox'ered up with ashes. The covering of the fire s\'mbolized the

inability-

words

of the chiefs to agree, or

one bundle," as the At the end of a session, the Iroquois put actions of the council were "read into" the

to

their

"roll

into

it.

belts of

wampum.

The form of government created b\' Deganawida and Hiawatha was well ahead of its time, and enabled the Iroquois Confederacy to become one of the most powerit

ful

Indian nations

in

North America. Founding

Father Benjamin Franklin greatly admired the Iroquois Confederac\'.

and he had

it

in

mind when he first started thinking about how the 3 American colonies could unite as an independent nation, y^ 1

Tired of berroyol British, the

by

the

Mohawk

chief i-lendrick declared in

1

753

that the "chain

of friendship" the

between

two peoples was

broken.

CHAPTER

4

Broken Dreams

L..arge

numbers

Europeans began to settle in North America in the 1600s. The Mohawks had heard about Europeans long before the>' met wliite men face-to-face.

News about

the

of

new t>pes

of tools, clothing,

and weapons that European traders offered In exchange for beaver furs spread quickl\' along the \'arious Nati\e American trading networks. Beaver hats and collars were extremeK' popular in Holland. France, and Great Britain, and beaxer could be obtained onl>' in North America. The Indians, on the other hand, wanted the metal objects and 33

woolen cloth brought to North America by the

The French explorer

Europeans.

Samuel

Once they began comers, the

trading with the

Mohawks quickly came to prefer

the metal tools

and

Europeans over

utensils brought

their

own

ditional skills

by the

handicrafts. In a

short time, they stopped practicing

ing.

new-

such

tra-

as pottery making and toolmak-

Soon, the

Mohawks were almost

totally

made

cie

Chomploin

this illustranon of

his victorious witli tlw

encounter

Moliaiuks

Lake Chami)lain

in

at

1609.

BROKEN DREAMS

35

dependent on the Europeans for various goods and necessities, and Moinawk men spent more and more time trapping beavers. The fur trade became the single most important part of the Mohawl< economy. Before the

fur trade

became so

important to

Mohawks had been careful to hunt onl\' as many animals as the\' needed for food and clothing, but now the Mohawks had them,

to

kill

obtain

tl^e

more and more beax'ers in order to the goods they needed. Soon, all the

beax'ers

in

the lands controlled

Mohawks were gone, and

the

b\'

the

Mohawks

resorted to fighting with other Indian peoples in

order to obtain beaver pelts. Baron Louis

de Lahontan. a French explorer who

visited

Mohawk territory in the late I600s. thought that the Mohawks had little choice but to go Without bea\'er pelts. Lahontan wrote, the Mohawks "would be starved to war.

to death, or at least obliged to lea\'e their

country."

Fighting over the fur trade

began soon

after

Europeans started settling near Mohawk territor\'. The first major conflict inx'oKing the Mohawks and Europeans took place in 609. when a group of Mohawk warriors were attacked at Lake Champlain b\' a group of Huron Indians, Algonkian Indians, and French soldiers led bv the famous French 1

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

36

explorer

Samuel de Champlaln. (Lake Cham-

plain

at

is

the northernmost extent of the

border between the present-day states of

New

York and Vermont.) The battle marked the Mohawks' first experience with another item that Europeans brought to North America guns. Although the Mohawks greatly

—

enemy, the guns of the French force helped to win the battle easily. The next year, the Mohawks were again easily defeated by the French and their Indian

outnumbered

their

it

allies in

a battle near the Richelieu River

in

Canada. This time, more than 100 Mohawk men were killed by French guns. Meanwhile, the European population near Iroquois territory

was

steadily growing.

More

and more French were settling along the St. Lawrence River in Canada, and in 1615 the Dutch the

built Fort

Hudson

Orange, a trading post, along

River on the site of what

the city of Albany,

New

is

now

York. Fort Orange

was located between the territories of the Mohawks and the Mahican Indians. Both of these Indian peoples wanted to control the fur trade

the only ones to

beaver

wanted to be supply the Dutch with

with the Dutch; both

pelts.

The Mohawks won the war with the Mahicans, and the Dutch introduced them to additional trade items. The Mohawks especially liked

brass

kettles, iron

hunting tools.

BROKEN DREAMS

37

and flour. The Dutch also traded in wampum, which they obtained from Indians li\1ng on Long Island. The warfare between Indian peoples for control of the fur trade became more intense. The Mohawks soon pro\'ed themseK^es to be the fiercest warriors, especialK' once the\' began obtaining guns from the Dutch in the I640s. duffel cloth, biscuits,

In

a short time, the

Mohawks controlled the

most important waterways for the fur trade the Hudson, St. Lawrence, and Richelieu rix'ers. The\' raided westward to the Great Lakes, northward into Canada, and eastward into New England. The Mohawks forced the Indian peoples living

in

those regions to

suppK' them with bea\'er pelts for trade with the Europeans. In some cases, the Mohawks acted as middlemen

in

trade

between

Indians and the Europeans. Often, warriors

would ambush the

the

Mohawk

canoes Fort Orange or Canada. The

fleets of

sent by other Indian tribes to

Montreal or Quebec in Mohawks even drove se\'eral tribes, including the Huron and the Erie, from their homelands. The Mohawks were as skilled at diplomacy as they were at warfare. The\' were superb to

and

and

used the competition between the different European groups the French, the English, and the Dutch for control of the northern part of traders

— —

negotiators,

the\'

38

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

own advantage. The>' British, who were competing

North America to their traded with the

with the Dutch for control of the fur trade

around Fort Orange, and the>' traded with the Dutch as well. Although the French had been their

enemy

since the time of the battle

at

Lake Champlain. the Mohawks also traded was to their advantage to with them when it

do so. Though the Mohawks preferred British trade goods, which were very well made, they kept on trading with the French in order to force the British traders to keep their prices low. All the while,

who wanted

the

number

to settle in

of

Europeans

Mohawk

territor>^

continued to grow. The Dutch settlers were generally

fair

in

purchasing land from the

Mohawks, but they were never \'er\' numerous, and they were quickly outnumbered by the British. The British were less fair to the Mohawks and used a variet>' of wa>'s to trick the Indians out of their land. One of the most common methods was to convince the Mohawks to sign papers that they could not read or understand. The Mohawks would be told that they had agreed to one thing, onl\' to learn later that they had signed papers that committed them to something very different. Still,

the

Mohawks tended

British militarily against the

to

support the

French, primarily I

BROKEN DREAMS

39

because they wished to maintain good trade relations. The British, however, were often untrustworthy allies. In the 1660s. a huge French and Indian force marched against the iMohawks' \1llages. burned their houses, and torched their cornfields, and the British did nothing to help. Sex'eral years

later,

a smaller

French arm\' again attacked the Mohawks,

and the

British

again did nothing.

Although the betrayed

British

took

their trust, the

choice but to maintain

their

land and

Mohawks had

little

their alliance

with

end of the I600s. the British in New York had come to outnumber the Iroquois. While the number of British colonists them.

B\' the

steadiK' increased, the Iroquois population

dwindled. E\'en more than warfare, disease

reduced the Indian population. The European settlers brought with them to North America

kinds of diseases

all

measles, influenza

— for

which the Indians

had no

immunit\'.

terribly.

Epidemics claimed the

of the

—smallpox,

and the Iroquois suffered lix'es

of

man\'

Mohawk people.

Though the Iroquois remained one of the most powerful Indian nations. the\' recognized that the\' were no longer a match for the English.

In

1684. an Iroquois chief told a

British arm\' officer at Albanx'.

mightv' leader

Y'ou are a

and we are but a small people.

40

THE MOHAWK

When

INDIAiNS

the English

first

came

to

New

York,

and Maryland, they were but a small people and we a large nation. We found that they were a good people and gave them land and dealt civilly with them. Now that you are grown numerous and we decreased, you must protect us." But was religion, not warfare, that posed Virginia,

.

'

it

the greatest threat to the

Mind,

One Law

of the

One

the

first

One

Mohawks. A French

Catholic priest, Isaac Jogues,

came

Heart,

in

1642 be-

missionary to reach the

Iro-

He would be followed by many more Catholic clergymen from France, all of them

quois.

eager to convert the

Mohawks to Christianity.

The missionaries, who were called Black Robes by the Indians, were not immediately successful. Jogues hoped to establish a mission in Mohawk territory, but the Indians were not very interested in his teachings, and he soon left. When he did, he accidentally left behind a black box in which he had stored his things. Soon after he departed, large numbers of Mohawks began to get sick and die.

Mohawk villages by disease. The Mohawks

For the next four years, the

were devastated

concluded that Father Jogues had bewitched the black box and that the sermons he had spoken to them contained evil charms and spells. When he returned to the Mohawks in 1646, they killed him.

I

^

continued on page 49

BEADWORK AND BASKETRY

A

rope necklace

made from

glass beads. Louise

Mc-

Comber, Wolf Clan, Knhna-

wake Reserve.

Crafts remain

Indian just

as

life.

an important

part of Mohawl' both men and women. Those Mohawks It

living

on the Akwesasne Reservation

in

New

York state especially treasure this craft. The men cut black ash trees, pound the trunks, and break the wood into strips. Women cut

and smooth these strips to make thin splints. The women also collect and dry wild sweet grass, which they weave into the splints. The result of all this hard work is a strong, textured, and sweet-smelling basket. Traditionally,

the

Mohawks made

simple baskets, which food. Today,

some

the>'

used

large,

to store

of their baskets are small

and fancy and are used as containers, and others are made to be small sculptures.

Muriel Nicholas, a member of the Bear Clan, beading the

42

Oka

Reserve.

at her

home on

A

leather collar adorned with a beaded

image of an

eagle. Rita Phillips,

Wolf Clan, Kahnawake Reserve.

Barrettes

made from

glass

beads and leather. Agnes Decaire,

Kahnawake

Reserve.

43

i

A

glass bead medallion that

was woven on Oka

a

loom. Adeline Etienne, Bear Clan, Reserve.

44

I

A

bandolier bag

Celestial Tree,

made from

which

is

cloth.

The beaded design represents the

described in the

Mohawk's

creation story.

David Maracle, Turtle Clan, Tyendinega Reserve.

45

Mary Adams,

a

member

of the

Wolf Clan and

resident of the

Akwe-

sasne Reservation, has handcrafted baskets for more than 50 years.

46

Adams

presented this basket to

Pope John Paul

II in

1980

when 17th-century Mohawk religious figure Kateli Tekak-

witha was beatified by the

Roman

A

lidded basket crafted to

commemorate

Catholic church.

the Strawberry Festival

held every June at Akzvesasne. Christie Arquette, Turtle Clan,

Akwesasne Reservation.

47

A

fiDicy basket

with cover. Cecelia Cree, Wolf Clan, Akivesasne Reservation.

A

multicolor fancy basket

woven by Mary Adams.

BROKEN DREAMS

49

continued from page 40

Though the Indians were right that Father Jogues had brought disease to them, witchcraft

was

not the cause.

Lii^e

other Euro-

peans, the French priest had brought more than trade goods, a desire

He

for land, or

germs

a

new

which the Indians had no immunit\'. Throughout religion with him.

carried

for

North America, missionaries unintentionally

spread deadly diseases among Natix-e Americans in this way. The Black Robes came again to the Mo-

hawks

in

1656.

Though

the missionaries did

not intend to destroy the

Mohawk

people,

was devastating because the\' did set out to eliminate many of the beliefs and customs that had held the Mohawks together for hundreds of >'ears. For example, some their effect

French priests believed that the wa\' the Mohawks tried to understand and fulfill their

dreams was a sign of devil worship, and they made their goal to rid the Mohawks of such beliefs. The\' also tried to change the indulit

Mohawks raised their children. They tried to teach the Mohawks that children

gent wa\' the

must be obedient and should be punished if they misbehaved. The priests also did not believe that married couples should be able to dix'orce.

A Mohawk

lasted until the death of

marriage usually

one

partner, but

if

a

and husband became unhapp>' with one another the\' were free to dix'orce and seek

wife

50

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

new mates. The mothers of the couple would however, and try to help settle any arguments. The priests worked to change this custom. Although the Mohawks were not greatly

step

in first,

interested in converting to Christianity, they

accepted the missionaries because they thought that by doing so they could improve their relations with the French, which might lead to increased trade. The priests were impressed with the military skills of the Mohawks and with the generosity of their society, in which no one was allowed to go hungry or be poor. They were, however, often frustrated with the Mohawks' refusal to embrace Christianity or to accept an allegiance with the French against the British, and they went so far as to advise the government of France to step up attacks against them. They believed that

if

the

Mohawks

were defeated, the other four Iroquois nations would agree to a treaty with France. The French never defeated the Mohawks militarily,

but the missionaries

victory

when

some

of the

they succeeded

Mohawks

to

won in

a great

convincing

convert to

Catholicism. In 1667, the priests talked the

converts into leaving

their

land and people

behind and moving to missions near Montreal, where, they said, the Catholic Mohawks

BROKEN DREAMS

would be safe near French

51

Because of their new religion, the conx'erts were distrusted b\' their families and neighbors. Their new settlement in Canada was called Kah-

nawake lage

in

group

(gah-na-WA-ge), after their former

New

the

MohoLvk settlement of Kahicanake. The settlement icos founded near Montreal. Canada, in

York. Xine \'ears

of Catholic

close-knit societ\'.

had converted

there

Catholicism.

Mohawks formed

another a

new

in

1667 by Mohaicks ivho to

later,

\'il-

Canada, also near Montreal. The new \'illage was called Kanesatake (gane-sa-DA-ge). In a short time the Canadian Mohawks adopted European wa>'s and values, which made them seem \'er\' strange to the New York Mohawks. The Mohawks in New York were greatly upset over this dix'ision in their formerly settlement

The longhouses of

forts.

had been a

Tliis

split in

was the first time Mohawk unit\-. They

worried that the French would soon

talk the

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

52

Christian

Mohawl^s

into fighting their

people. Although the Indians at

and Kanesatake

tried to

own

Kahnawake

remain neutral

in

the

Iroquois-French conflicts, they often found

themselves fighting for France or trying to convince the New York iMohawks to side with the French in their battles against the British. Queen Anne's War pitted the soldiers of Great Britain and France against one another in North America between 1702 and 1713,

and caused the greatest rift to that point between the New York Mohawks and the Canadian Mohawks. As in the past, the Mohawks were pressured to take sides. The Iroquois, including the New York Mohawks, fought on the side of the English, and the Catholic Mohawks in Canada fought for the it

French. At this point, the British tried to use of the to

same methods

secure the

some

had used the Mohawks and

the French

loyalt\' of

the other Iroquois. The\' sent missionaries

Mohawks

to convert the

and

the>' built

a

fort

to Christianity,

for the protection of

Mohawks. But the New York Mohawks were not particularly interested in becoming Christians, and the British continued to cheat the Mohawks out of huge sections of their homeland. Each year, more settlers came to Iroquois country. The Mohawks petitioned the

The

Mohawk

chief Bront

Lvas one of several

Mohawk

leaders

were inuited to

to

who

England

speak with the queen

during Queen Anne's War.

the king of England.

nothing

was done

to

George

III

prevent

for help,

Illegal

but

sales of

The Indians did not understand European methods of measuring land, and they could not read land deeds. They were thus cheated out of hundreds and even thouIroquois land.

sands

of acres.

54

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

During

this

time a

sixtti

nation joined

tiie

The Tuscaroras were an Iroquoian people who had been living in Iroquois Confederacy.

Europeans North America. When the English began

Virginia at the time of the arrival of in

taking over their territories, the Tuscaroras

asked the Iroquois in the north for protection and a place of safety. They were admitted to the confederacy in 1722. Over the next several decades, Protestant missionaries from Great Britain continued their efforts to tianity,

convert the

Mohawks

to Chris-

They opened was taught at two

with greater success.

schools where religion

Mohawk

villages,

and they urged the Mo-

hawks to form closer ties with

the British. But

the disputes over land ownership continued,

and in 1753 a Mohawk chief named Hendrick announced that the "chain of friendship" between his people and the British was now broken. Finally, the Mohawks announced that the chain of friendship between all the Iroquois nations and Great Britain was broken. The British promised that they would treat the Mohawks more fairly, and when the French and Indian War began in 1756, the Mohawks once again promised to support their old allies.

The French and

Indian War, which lasted

seven years, was the

final battle

between the

BROKEN DREAiMS

55

and the French for control of eastern North America. The British won, in large part because of the help of the Mohawks, who suffered many casualties. The Mohawks hoped to be rewarded for their service with years of peace on the small amount of land they still owned, but they were soon caught British

in

the middle of a

new

fight. -Av

The great Mohoiuk chief

and orator Joseph Brant tried to

persuade the

Iroquois Confederacy to side with the British

during the American Revolution.

CHAPTER

The Mohawks and the American Revolution

iD\' the 1770S. man\' of the inhabitants of the 13 colonies believed that the colonies

should declare their independence. The\' resented being made to pa\' taxes to the British crown when the\' were not represented in Parliament. (Parliament

was

the legislatix'e

bod\' for Great Britain, just as the Congress

is

the legislati\'e bod\' for the United States.)

57

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

58

The

colonists

attempt to

were also angered by

restrict their

Britain's

settlement to lands

east of the Appalachian Mountains

and south

Ohio River. These disagreements led ultimately to the American Revolution, which

of the

began on April 9, 775, with a skirmish between British redcoats and colonial minutemen at the villages of Lexington and Concord 1

1

in

On

Massachusetts.

colonies

officially

July 4,

1776, the 13

proclaimed

their inde-

pendence from Great Britain. The rebellious colonists were aware that the Iroquois were loyal to the British, and they

knew

that the

Mohawks could make

a

huge difference in the outcome of the war, as they had in the French and Indian War. In 1775. therefore, some leaders of the American rebels invited

some

of the Iroquois

leaders to Albany for a meeting. icans offered to give ly

warm

clothing,

if

them

The Amer-

supplies, especial-

they would promise to

remain neutral in the quarrel between the colonists and England. The Iroquois agreed, but only

on the condition

that the colonists

promise to resolve some land disputes that had taken place. The British were still determined to have the help of their old allies. They promised the Iroquois that whatever property they lost during the war would be restored to them by the

THE MOHAWKS AND THE REVOLUTION

king of England afterward.

knew

The

59

British also

that the best wa\' to gain the loyalty

of the Iroquois

was

to

become

only

their

supplier of European goods, which they

achieved by defeating an American force, led b\' George Washington, that was in New York Cit>'. That victorx' cut off the supply of goods the Americans had intended for the Iroquois, for the goods arrived in New York Harbor aboard ships from. Europe. British leaders secured further Iroquois support b\' courting important Indian leaders, such as the Mohawk chief Joseph Brant, who traveled to England to speak with King George and other government leaders about fighting for Britain.

spoke

his return, Brant

meeting of the Iroquois support of Great Britain in its

to a council

Confederacx' fight

Upon

in

with the colonists.

The Mohawks,

the

Senecas, and the Ca\'ugas agreed with his arguments, while the Oneidas and the Tuscaroras favored the American rebels. The Onondagas were divided among themselves.

Unable

to

reach an agreement, the con-

federacy leaders sadK' coxered up the council fire at

the central

Onondaga

xillage.

and

the confederac>' officialK' remained neutral.

The and

results of the council

individual

pleased no one,

Mohawks made

their

own

60

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

decisions about which side to support. The principle of unity

— One

One Law— had been

Heart,

One

Mind,

and the Iroquois Confederacy, which had stressed strength through unity, would never be as violated,

strong again.

Joseph Brant and

his

many

followers con-

tinued to support the British,

who

supplied

Mohawks with tools, clothing, and weapons. Many Mohawks felt that although they the

had no support them, especially once

did not fully trust the British, they

choice but to

the colonial legislature of all

New

York claimed

Indian land within the state

and offered

anyone who joined the rebel forces. To the Mohawks, such actions seemed to prove that the British were right in saying that an American \'ictor\' would mean the end of Indian control over their land. Though most of the Mohawks remained neutral, American rebels burned their crops, stole their livestock, and attacked them as

600 acres of

it

to

acts of revenge against the Iroquois warriors

who were

fighting with the British.

The Americans won the war, but American independence meant less freedom for the Mohawks. Britain relinquished all land claims in North America east of the Mississippi and south of Canada. This land that the

territor\'

included the

Mohawks regarded as their own.

THE MOHAWKS AND THE REVOLUTION

The new gox'ernment This drawing of the

was

MoliQick reserve of

Akivesosne icos done ihe 1850s.

the

known

as

St.

the British

when

had no

their land. especiall\'

the

Mohawks

right to

since so

ar-

surrender

many

Iroquois

had fought against American independence. The Americans made no effort to keep settlers out of Iroquois territorx', and b\' the end

Sew

York-Canada border, also

gued that

of the United States

in

Akwesasne.

which straddles

not sympathetic

61

is

Regis.

4-

"&^ j-iT'

'(^^A. m^'^^:^~M

ih^^

.m

'^.7-

.^>;

.•ij--i

M

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

62

of the

moved

1780S most of the Mohawks had to Canada. There, most of them set-

tled in the

Mohawk villages that had been

fi\'e

established there over the preceding years:

Kahnawake, Kanesatake. Akwesasne (ahgwe-SAS-ne), Tyendinega (ti-yen-di-NE-ga), and Six Nations, where peoples of all the Iroquois nations settled and the confederacy

was reestablished. m Canada in the years following the American Revolution, the Mohawks tried to fire

adapt to

new

lives in a

continued to hunt,

began

to their land

society.

They

and farm, and they poultry', and horses.

fish,

to raise pigs,

Newcomers from

new

other Indian groups

came

and were accepted. As the

fur

Mohawk men became logand canoeists. Some traveled

trade died out, gers, trappers,

west across Canada and married into other Indian communities. In time the Canadian government set aside the Mohawks' land as protected enclaves called reserves. (A

serve

is

the

re-

same thing as a reservation in the

United States.)

Other policies of the Canadian government

were more destructive

to the

Mohawks. At

various periods throughout the iSOOs, the

government created

policies designed to

Mohawk system of common. Instead, the

destroy the traditional

owning

their

land

in

Mohoick men on o bridge 1800s.

By

oj Lvork

in the late

that time,

many Mohoivks hod come to rely on wage ivork rather than hunting, trapping, or

for their living.

farming

THE MOHAWKS AND THE REVOLUTION

63

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

64

government divided Mohawk reserves into small plots, called allotments, that were to be owned by individuals. Such policies were a further blow to the Mohawks' concept of unity, and they greatly diminished the role of Mohawk women in their community. At Six Nations, the Canadian government also required that the Mohawks be governed by elected representatives rather than by hereditary chiefs, and women were not allowed to vote.

Despite the the reserves

managed

many in

hardships of

the

l800s, the

to maintain

many

their

life

on

Mohawks

of the traditions

had enabled them to survive as a people for so long. They also developed new traditions that helped them as well. Although missionaries controlled education on the reserves for many years, by the end of the 1800S the Mohawks had established 13 schools of their own. The Mohawks' schools enabled them to pass on their traditions to their children and therefore ensure that their beliefs would endure. that

During

this time,

many Mohawks also a new religion, called

be-

came believers in the Handsome Lake Religion or the Longhouse Religion. Handsome Lake was a Seneca man

who

dream, he he was to preach a new

lived in the early isoos. In a

received a vision that

THE MOHAWKS AND THE REVOLUTION

65

Handsome Lake's message, which he called the Good Word, message

to the Iroquois.

stressed the traditional Iroquois x-alues of

and kindness. Although he also advocated that the Iroquois adopt some Canadian and American practices, the religion he founded did much to

generositN'. cooperation,

help the

Mohawks

seK'es. their past,

maintain pride

and

in

their culture, /^v

them-

Our

children mast lmt?e a

Creator wiCt tnow? tliem

name In

rplien tlietj

tlieir

native tanguoge so

pass from

All of the Ceremonies must ^e bone in our

tills

tlie

voortb to tke next.

tax^ixcu^e as tlie

creator

taught us, Wi^en no person of our nation spea^ our (language we wiiX.

no longer

e:\;^s't cis

was designed to show Mohawk children the This poster

importance of learning their native

language.

CHAPTER

The Mohawks

6

in

the 20th Century

in the 20th century, the

Mohawks have once

shown their abilit\' to adapt to changing circumstances. Todax'. most Mohawks work again

wages. The\' are emplox'ed in businesses and factories in towns and cities. Some men work as miners, carpenters, mechanics, facfor

tory hands, or builders. Others

mobile factories Oakville, Ontario.

New

in

auto-

and are employed as

in Buffalo,

Women

work

York,

nurses, teachers, factory workers, or service

employees. 67

THE MOHAWK INDIANS

68

Most Akwesasne and Kahnawake men have spent some part of their lives employed in high-steel construction. They work in places such as Rochester, Boston, New York City, Buffalo, and Syracuse, building bridges and skyscrapers. It is not uncommon for them to live in city apartments during the week and return to their reserves on the weekend. Groups of men live, work, and travel together.

Some Mohawks live and work in their communities. At the three largest reserves

—Six

Kahnawake, and Akwesasne^obs are available in band offices, schools, restaurants, stores, and gas stations. On smaller reserves, cranberry farms produce 10 to 25

Nations,

percent of Canada's supply of

this fruit.

Still,

more people work off the reserve than on. The conflict over elected versus hereditary leaders on the Six Nations reserve continues. Because only about one-third of the Mohawks there vote, some people have argued that the elective system does not work especially well.

Mohawks care

Some

people believe

that

so few

vote because they do not really

who their leaders are,

but others believe

so low because most Mohawks do not like the elective system and would prefer to have hereditary chiefs as that the voter turnout is

their leaders. In 1959, the hereditary chiefs

THE MOHAWKS

IN

THE 20TH CENTURY

69

tried to regain their leadersiiip positions at Six

Nations

b>'

taking o\'er

tiie

council offices.

They stayed one week before the Ro\'al Canadian Mounted Police forced them to leaxe. At Kahnawake and Akwesasne, hereditary chiefs continue to be respected

members

of the

community even though

do not hold electix'e office. Land continues to be a major issue for the Mohawks. Instead of fighting with guns, the Mohawks have had to learn how to fight for their land in the political and legal system. In the 1950s, the governments of Canada and the United States took more land from the Kahnawake Mohawks in order to build the St. Lawrence Seaway, a series of locks, dams, and canals along the St. Lawrence River that would connect the Atlantic Ocean and the the\'

Great Lakes. The\' offered mone\' to the

dians

for their land, but the

The

In-

Mohawks refused

and Canadian goxernments then simply took the land. The Motheir offer.

U.S.

hawks took their case to the United Nations, which was sympathetic but did not lielp.

On

other matters concerning their

self-determination, the

more

successful,

in

right to

Mohawks have been

1969. for example, the\'

blockaded a bridge that spans the St. Lawrence River and connects the American and Canadian sides of Akwesasne. (.\kwesasne

— THE MOHAWK INDIANS

70

is

also

St.

known as the St. Regis Reserve or tine

Regis Reservation, and

it

occupies

ter-

on both sides of the U.S. -Canada border.) Tlie Mohawl^s were angry because the Canadian government had established a customs station and toll booth at the bridge and were subjecting the Indians to customs inspections and forcing them to pay tolls each time they crossed. The Indians believed that according to a 794 treaty, they had the right to cross the border whenever they pleased. After years of Mohawk opposition and protests, they were finally granted the right to free passage in the 1980s. The most important issue for the Mohawks continues to be self-determination the right to govern their own nation and control their own destiny. The Mohawks believe that the ritory

In

recent years, the

MohoLuks houe been

more

assertive about

claiming their right to self-determination, in the

mici-1970s.

armed

Mohawk men a tract of land

Sew

occupied in

upstate

York for three

years.

They

called the

site

Ganienkeh (Ga-NYES-

ge)

and claimed

1

—

right

to self-determination,

or sovereignty,

them in many treaties local and national governUnited States and Canada have

has been granted over the years, but

to

ments in the often been reluctant to recognize this right. The Mohawks expressed their belief on this matter

in

1970,

over land with

in

the course of a dispute

New

York

State.

"We are not

Mohawk leaders "We have our own nation

citizens of state or nation,"

said at that time. the Six Nations.

You

ha\'e

no

right to legislate

us or us for you." In 1984, officials in Quebec signed an agreement with the Kahfor

it

was

just a small part of a

much

larger territory that

rightfully

the

belonged

Mohawk

nation.

to

THE MOHAWKS

IN

THE 20TH CENTURY

71

MOHAWK CAMr> IfJs arte /# parf ot fh» landvndfir 9ho hoalendoboriginal f/th c^ the Uchomh Hafion Fit Uohamk* hort ncturned fI* our homalond Witn tff help or ether fradttlonci

'

Indians.mc that/ moKo a home for any and alt /ndians who wish fo fire according to their own culture, custcmartnuf frttdlflcn

Mo tiff) notions a /I over the rnvr/dhcrm r^^lned tf* lands US-rffstorsd OAlnawa fa Jop^in ft oBmtfme that t ' ' fire shall bo ax tended fc Mmertcv rendering of ond thtft this Inn'' shall h0 raster i>d to the i/r>A.7»

Jf

^i/P^^ut f^ prove

i

that tmdtt, ^nalJndtnn*

^\ ^3r'm--'i^'

' of life, and the elected leaders and their followers, who believe that the huge amounts of money that could be made on the reserve from casino gambling could be used to create jobs, provide for education, and generally improve the Indians' standard of living. The Mohawk Council of Chiefs appealed to the U.S. government for help in settling the issue, but the dispute still has not been resolved, in October 1990, however, a committee of the New York State Assembly

The 1978 lacrosse team of the Akwesasne reserve. Lacrosse just

one of

the

is

many

cultural traditions that

the

Mohawks have

preserved age.

in the

modern

THE MOHAWKS

IN

THE 20TH CENTIRY

75

suggested that the Mohawks be able to choose \vhate\er form of go\'ernment the communitN' wants.

The Mohawks societies

waged

tliat

are

one

of the man\- Indian

ha\e managed

to sur\'i\'e

wars

against them, forced migration to

and

other lands,

other peoples'

the pressure to adapt to

ways

likeK' that the\' will

gox'ernment

like

of

life.

Though

be able

it

is

un-

to re-create a

the original Iroquois Confed-

— to be

once again of One Heart. One Mind. One Law the more than 40.000 Mohawks who li\'e toda\' on the various reeracy

—

serves remain determined to protect rights

their

and li\'e the wa\' they choose. The>' still

have e\'er\' reason to feel pride in being the People of the Place of Flint, the Keepers of the Eastern Door, j^

CHRONOLOGY 1700-1200 A.D. .\.D.

ca.

B.C.

200

1000-1300

1300 or 1400

New

Iroquois migrate to northeastern

York

Middle Woodland period of the Iroquois

The .Mohawks form

their

own

nation

The .Mohawks form the Iroquois Confederacy' with Senecas. the Onondagas, the Oneidas, and

the

the

Cax'ugas

1609

The .Mohawks are defeated in battle by French and Indian forces led b\' Samuel de Champlain

1642

The .Mohawks sionar\-. the

1660S

1722

ha\-e their

first

encounter with a mis-

French priest Isaac Jogues

The .Mohawks are attacked b\' ,200 French troops and their 600 Indian allies: settlers take an increasing amount of .Mohawk land; conx'erted .Mohawks lea\'e their homeland for a Catholic mission in Canada l

.•\

sixth Indian .Nation, the Tuscaroras. joins Iroquois

Confederacy'

1756-63

1770s

The .Mohawks help and Indian War

1924

\'ictor\' in

the French

Confederacy' leaders cannot agree on which side to

support

1780S

the British to

.Man\'

in

the .American Rex'olution

.Mohawks leaxe .New York

for

Canada

Canadian goxernment forces the Mohawks

to elect

leaders

1984

Canadian gox'ernment recognizes the Mohawks as a so\'ereign equal

1990

.A

committee of the

gests the

Mohawks

New

York State Assembly' sugbe allowed to choose whatever

form of goN'ernment the community wants

76

GLOSSARY confederacy

a union of tribes or nations that functions as unit;

Five Nations

one

see Fi\e Nations

the confederac>' of the five Iroquois tribes (the

Mohawks, the Senecas, the Oneidas, the Cavugas. and the Onondagas); when the Tuscaroras joined the confederacN'

Good Word

Kanienkehaka

became

it

the Six Nations

Seneca named Handsome Lake, who stressed traditional Iroquois \alues such as generosit\-. cooperation, and kindness a religion created b\' a

the

name

the

Mohawks

call

themseKes

in their

language, meaning the People of the Place of

longhouse

a large, bark-covered dwelling that

Mohawk Midwinter

a major

the

moiety

end

own Flint

housed se\eral

families

Mohawk of

religious ceremon>' that

one \ear and the beginning

a basic di\ision of the

Mohawk

marked

of the next.

nation, a grouping

of clans

Onkwehonwe reserve

the

Mohawk word

the

first

"red

for Nati\'e

man" created

b\'

American,

named

for

Teharonhiawako

the Canadian term for reserxation: land set aside b\'

the

go\ernment

for

use

b\-

a specific group of

Indians

Teharonhiawako

in

the

who

Mohawk

creation story, the

created the four races

and red

name

— \ellow.

of the

man

white, black,

INDEX Akwesasne. Albany, 39,

Grand Council, 29

62, 68, 69, 73

New

.

York, 12, 18,36,

58

H

Algonkian Indians, 35

Handsome Lake, 64, 65 Handsome Lake Religion,

American Revolution, 58-62

64, 65

Hendrick, 54

B

Hereditar\' chiefs, 30, 64. 68, 69.

Bear clan, 18, 19 Black Robes, 40, 49 Brant, Joseph, 59, 60

74 Hiawatha. 26, 27, 30. 3 Hudson River, 12, 36. 37 1

Huron Indians. 35, 37 Canada.

13, 36, 37, 51, 52. 60.

62. 68, 69, 70. 72. 73. 74

Canadian Mohawks. 5i also Catholic

.

52.

Iroquois Confederac\', 12, 13, 17,

See

Mohawks

Ca\uga

Mohawks,

50, 51, 52

Indians, 12, 26, 30.

Christianit\-, 40. 50, 52.

39, 40, 50, 52, 54, 58. 59, 60, 61 70, 75 Canadian resettlement, 62, 64, 65 longhouse ssmbol, 29 m\'thological origins. 26-29 political structure, 29-31 sixth nation, 53-54 ,

Casino gambling. 73-74 Catholicism. 40. 50 Catholic

I

59

54

D Deganawida (Peacemaker), 2629. 30, 3

1

Jogues, Isaac, 40, 49

Early

Woodland

Period, 15

English, the, 13, 37, 38. 39, 40. 50, 52, 54, 58, 60, 61 Erie Indians,

37 .

Kahnawake, Canada, 69

Kahnawake

Europeans. 33. 34. 35. 37. 38. 39. 49. 51

K

54

F

51, 62. 68,

Council, 71

Kanesatake, Canada. 51. 52. 62. 72 Kanienkehaka. 12. 13. 17. See also

Mohawk

Indians

Five Nations. 12. 29, 30. See also Iroquois Confederacy Franklin, Benjamin, 3

1

French, the, 35. 36, 37. 38. 39. 50, 51. 52.

priests, 40. 49.

50

French and Indian War, 54. 58 Fur trade, 33-38, 50. 62

78

Lake Champlain.

Battle

at.

38

Late Woodland Period. 16. 17

55

29 See Hand-

Longhouse.

17. 18.

Longhouse

Religion.

some Lake

Religion

M

"fire

keepers." 29

Orenda. 2

Mahican Indians. 36

1

Mohawk

Council of Chiiefs. 74 Moinawk Indians (Kanienkehiakai Canadian settlements. 62. 64

ceremonies. 20, 2 clans. 18-19.

i

Palisades. 16. 17

People

30

diplomacy. 37. 38. 39. 40. 50. 52. 58. 59. 69-7 disease. 39. 40. 49

19.

of the Eastern Door.

29, 75 livelihoods. 15. 16. 18. 62. 67.

68, 73.

In-

Queen Anne's War. 52

20

Iroquois Confederac\'. 25-31

Keepers

See also Mohawk

dians

1

education, 54, 64, 73. 74 elected representatives, 64. 68. 69. 74

games.

of the Place of Flint. 13.

17. 75.

74

mxthological origin. 7-12 religion. 20-22. 40. 49. 50. 64.

65

St.

Lawrence

River. 36. 37.

69

Regis Reservation. 70 Sawiskera. 9. 10 St.

Seneca Indians. 12. 26. 30. 59. 64 Keepers of the Western Door. 29 Six .Nations.

Canada, 62, 64, 68,

69 Sk>- World, 7

reservations. 62-75

Snow

snakes.

20

19.

trade. 15-16. 33-38. 50. 59. 60.

62 warfare. 16. 35. 37. 38. 39. 52.

Mohawk Mohawk

Teharonhiawako. Thadodaho. 29

60

54.

women.

18.

19. 64.

67

9,

River, 17, 18

Tree of

River valley. 12

Turtle clan, 18, 19

Moieties. 19.

Life, 7.

10.

11,

12

8

Tuscarora Indians, 54. 59 Tyendinega. Canada. 62

30

N New York. 40, 51

New

.

12. 13,

15. 18. 36. 39.

60. 70. 72. 73

York .Mohawks. 51

.

Uncles, the. 2 United .Nations. 69 United States. 15.57.61.62.69 1

52

O One

Heart.

One

.Mind.

One Law.

26. 40, 60, 75

Oneida Indians,

12, 26, 30,

Onkwehonwe, 12 Onondaga Indians, 30. 31

.

59

U

59

12. 26. 27.

W Wampanoag Indians. 23 Wampum. 22. 23. 27. 31. 37 Washington. George. 59 Witchcraft. 2 1. 27. 40. 4 wolf clan. 18. 19

1

79

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Janet Hlbbard-Brown has a B.A.

New

York University and

books

for children.

children

in Fa>'Ston.

children's

She

is

Modern Humanities from

lives with her

\'ermont.

book about

in

the author of three non-fiction

husband and two

where she

is

working on a

Lizzie Borden.

PICTURE CREDITS The Bettmann Archive, p. quois Indian .Museum,

Ca\uga Museum, p. 20: Iropp. 4 1-48: Kanien'kehaka

14:

Raoutitiohkwa Cultural Center, pp. 51. 63: gress, pp. 24. 28 (neg.

Librar\' of

Con-

#LC-USZ62-90555). 34-35 (neg.

#LC-USZ62-33978). 56 (neg. #LC-USZ62-20488): McCord

Museum

Canadian Histor\-. Montreal, p. 6: National Archives of Canada, pp. 32 (neg. #C-92414). 53 (neg #C92418): North American Traveling Indian College, pp. 66. of

72, 74: Smithsonian Institution. National Anthropological

Archixes, pp. 60-61 (neg. #965-F): L'PI/Bettmann.

p. 71.

THE JUNIOR LIBRARY OF AMERICAN INDIANS

THE

MOHAWK INDIANS The Mohaiuk Indians

—the

eastern door

tells

the story of the keepers of the

easternmost guardians of the sacred

council of the Five Nations of the Iroquois.

The Mohawks once lived as hunters and gatherers near what is today Albany, New York, under their principle of unity One Heart, One Mind, One Law. In the 7th century, the Europeans began to settle in the area, and the Mohawks' lives were disrupted forever. The British took away a majority of the Mohawks' land, and French missionaries tried to convert them to Christianity, leaving the tribe divided both geographically and spiritually. Today, the Mohawks live in eastern New York state and Ontario, Canada, still fighting to keep their land, their traditions, and

—

1

their history alive.

Each volume in the junior LiBa\RY of American Indians documents the culture, history, and modern life of a major Native American group.

CHELSEA HOUSE PUBLISHERS ~.

7

'"53849"01667""

o

.

9

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0-791 0-1 667-6 M-

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