Maddie's Ancestor Search

Thursday, June 23, 2011

The Mohawks

The Mohawk were the most easterly tribe of the Iroquois confederation. They called themselves Kanien'gehaga, people of the place of the flint. (Kanien'kehá:ka) Their territory ranged to present-day southern Quebec and eastern Ontario. Their traditional homeland stretched southward of the Mohawk River, eastward to the Green Mountains of Vermont, westward to the border with the Oneida Nation traditional homeland territory, and northward to the St Lawrence River.

As original members of the Iroquois League, or Haudenosaunee, the Mohawk were known as the "Keepers of the Eastern Door." For hundreds of years, they guarded the Iroquois Confederation against invasion from that direction by tribes from the New England and lower New York areas.

Life as a Mohawk

The Mohawk Indian male sometimes wore a hair style in which all their hair would be cut off except for a narrow strip down the middle of the scalp from the forehead to the nape, that was approximately three finger widths across. This style was only used by warriors going off to war.

The Mohawk Indians saw their hair as a connection to the Creator and therefore grew it long. The women wore their hair long often with traditional Bear Grease or tied back into a single braid. Their heads were often not covered by a covering or hat, often wearing nothing on their heads in winter.

Traditional dress styles of the Mohawk peoples consisted of women going topless in summer with a skirt of deerskin. In colder seasons, women wore a full woodland deerskin dress, leather tied underwear, long fashioned hair or a braid and bear grease. There was otherwise nothing on their head, except several ear piercings adorned by shell earrings, shell necklaces and also puckered seam ankle wrap moccasins.

Dressed for Winter

The traditional dress styles of the Mohawk men consisted solely of a breech cloth of deerskin in summer, deerskin leggings and a full-piece deerskin shirt in winter, several shell strand earrings, shell necklaces, long fashioned hair or a three finger width forehead-to-nape hair row which stood approximately three inches from the head, and puckered seamed wrap ankle moccasins. The men would also carry a quill and flint arrow hunting bag as well as arm and knee bands.

The Mohawks believed that winter was a time of death in which Mother Earth went into a long slumber, in which many plants died. But when spring arrived and nature began to flourish, she had woken up and given life once again. The Summer Initiation Festival was held at the beginning of May each year to celebrate the coming of summer and the life it brought. This has been a very respected and honored festival of the Mohawk people for several thousands of years. For five days, the Mohawks performed various rituals, such as planting new seeds that would flourish into plants over the summer that honored and celebrated the Mother Earth for the life she gave to the Earth.

Mohawk Nation wedding ceremonies were conducted by a chief, since the chief held the sanction to perform the greatest rituals before the Creator. In a marriage, the couple vowed their commitment before the Creator. The marrying man and woman then united in a lifelong relationship and there is not any custom for divorce. The Mohawk Nation people were a matrilineal society and held marriage as a great commitment which should be nurtured and respected. Much respect was given to the woman by her husband because the woman is the head of the household.

The traditional marriage ceremony included a day of celebration for the man and woman, a formal oration by the chief of the woman's nation and clan, community dancing and feast, and gifts of respect and honor by community members. Traditionally these gifts were practical, which the couple would use in their everyday religious and working lives.

For clothing, the man and woman wore white rabbit leathers and furs with personal adornments, usually made by their families, to stand apart from the rest of the community's traditional style of dress during the ceremony. The "Rabbit Dance Song" and other social dance songs were sung by the men, where they used gourd rattles and later cow-horn rattles. In the "Water Drum." other well-wishing couples participated in the dance with the couple. The meal then commenced after the ceremony and everyone who participated ate.

Interaction with European Settlers

In 1614, the Dutch opened a trading post at Fort Nassau, New Netherland, near present-day Albany, NY. The Dutch initially traded for furs with the local Mahican. In 1628, the Mohawk tribe defeated the Mahican, who retreated to Connecticut. The Mohawk gained a near-monopoly in the fur trade with the Dutch by not allowing the neighboring Algonquian-speaking tribes to the north or east to trade with them. The Dutch established trading posts at present-day Schenectady and Schoharie, further west in the Mohawk Valley.

Trading at Albany

The Mohawk and Dutch became allies. Their relations were peaceful even during the periods of Kieft's War and the Esopus Wars, when the Dutch fought localized battles with other tribes. The Dutch trade partners equipped the Mohawk to fight against other nations allied with the French, including the Ojibwe, Huron-Wendat and Algonquin. In 1645, the Mohawk made peace with the French.

After the fall of New Netherland to England in 1664, the Mohawks in New York became English allies. During King Philip's War, Metacom, sachem of the warring Wampanoag Pokanoket, decided to winter with his warriors near Albany in 1675. Encouraged by the English, the Mohawks attacked and killed all but 40 of the 400 Pokanokets.

In 1666, the French attacked the Mohawk in the central New York area, burning all the Mohawk villages and their stored food supply. One of the conditions of the peace was that the Mohawks accept Jesuit missionaries. Beginning in 1669, missionaries attempted to convince many Mohawks from paganism to Christianity and relocate to two mission villages near Montreal.

These Mohawks became known as Kahnawake (also spelled Caughnawaga) and they became allies of the French. Many converted to Catholicism at Kahnawake, the village named after them. One of the most famous Catholic Mohawks was Kateri Tekakwitha, who was later beatified.

From the 1690s, the Mohawks in the New York colony underwent a period of Christianization by Protestant missionaries. Many were baptized with English surnames, while others were given both first and surnames in English.

During the era of the French and Indian War (also known as the Seven Years' War), Anglo-Mohawk partnership relations were maintained by men such as Sir William Johnson (for the British Crown), Conrad Weiser (on behalf of the colony of Pennsylvania), and Hendrick Theyanoguin (for the Mohawks). The Albany Congress of 1754 was called in part to repair the damaged diplomatic relationship between the British and the Mohawks.

After the American victory in the Revolutionary War, a large group of Iroquois moved out of New York to a new home land at Six Nations of the Grand River in Ontario, Canada, led by Joseph Brant, a prominent Mohawk war chief.

The Mohawk Indians fought against the United States in the War of 1812. The Mohawk Nation, as part of the Iroquois Confederacy, was recognized for some time by the British government and the Confederacy was a participant in the Congress of Vienna, having been allied with the British during the War of 1812.

Members of the Mohawk Indian tribes are now living in settlements throughout New York State and southeastern Canada. Mohawks also form the majority on the mixed Iroquois reserve, Six Nations of the Grand River, in Ontario. There are also Mohawk Orange Lodges in Canada.

In addition to Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha (Catherine Tekawitha), other famous Mohawk Indians are Joseph Brant, his sister Molly Brant, Ots-Toch, wife of Dutch colonist Cornelius A. Van Slyck, August Schellenberg, actor, and Jay Silverheels, actor, best known for his role as Tonto on the television series, The Lone Ranger.

Jay Silverheels

Joseph Brant

August Shellenberger in native dress

Sources:

http://www.indians-artifact.com/indians%20of%20north%20america/mohawk%20indian.php (Retrieved 24 June 2011).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohawk_people (Retrieved 24 June 2011).

http://www.native-net.org/tribes/mohawk-indians.html (Retrieved 24 June 2011).

Mohawk Village Map


History of the Mohawk Valley: Gateway to the West 1614-1925, edited by Nelson Greene (Chicago: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1925).

MAP LEGEND

Chart Map showing location of the chief Mohawk Indian towns on or near the Mohawk River from the time of their migration from Canada and Vermont to the Valley about 1580, until the few remaining Mohawks were removed by Col. Van Schaick in 1779. The Dutch settlements and forts of Albany, Waterford, Niskayuna. and Schenectady settled prior to 1700 are here shown. Up until 1666, the dates here shown are all estimates; after that they are matters of historical record.

Period Marks indicating chief Mohawk Towns or "Castles"

1580-1625 (?) generally called "prehistoric"
1625-1640 (?)
1640-1666
1667-1693
1693-1700, tribal town of Ogsadaga (Tribes Hill)
1700-1779
Dutch settlements and forts prior to 1700-

Rivers as indicated on the map, roughly left to right: Mohawk River, West Canada (Kuyahoora), East Canada (Auskerada), Schoharie River, Tawasentha, Hudson River.
Town and other sites as indicated on the map, roughly left to right:

Canajoharie Upper Mohawk Castle (Indian castle) 1700-1779
Tenotoge (Oak Hill on the Dutchtown Road) 1625-1640
Otstungo (Indial Hill) 1580-1625 ("prehistoric")
Tarajorees (Prospect Hill-Fort Plain) 1700-1755
Sochanidisse (1 mile west of Canajoharie) 1625-1640
(?) Tionnontogen 1689-1693
Tionnontogen 1667-1689
Garoga 1580-1625 ("prehistoric")
Briggs Run 1580-1625
Canagora 1666-1693
Tionnontogen (Sprakers) 1640-1666
Onekagonka (west of Randall) 1625-1640
Andagoron (1 mile west of Fultonville) 1640-1666
Cayadutta (Sammonsville) ("prehistoric")
Caughnawaga (Fonda) 1666-1693
Gandawague 1659-1669
Osseruenon (Auriesville, site of Father Jogues' captivity 1642-1644) 1640-1659
Ogsadaga (Tribes Hill) 1693-1700
Iconderoga Lower Castle (Fort Hunter) 1770-1779
Schenectady
Conastigione (Niskayuna)
Half Moon (Waterford)
Albany
Mohawk Fishing Village
Saratoga Mohawk
Mythical (but possible) Mohawk Village at Cohoes Falls, of the Dekanawida legend, period of 1580 (?)

==========

This map was drawn by Nelson L. Greene, a prolific author of the early 20th century. He was descended on his father's side from the early Palatine settler, Johan Jost Herkimer, and from Captain George Herkimer, who married Alida Schuyler. In 1777, Capt. Herkimer inherited the home of his brother, General Nicholas Herkimer. It is through Alida that Nelson Greene claimed descent from Philip Pietersen Schuyler, who settled in Fort Orange (Albany) shortly after 1650.

Nelson attended school in Fort Plain. He read extensively about the Mohawk Valley and New York state history and as a boy contributed articles on local history to his father's newspaper. Over the years, he had papers on state and valley historical subjects published in newspapers from Schenectady to Rome.

He studied art in New York City and practiced the dual professions of artist and writer on New York State and Mohawk Valley historical subjects. In 1915 he published Old Fort Plain and the Middle Mohawk Valley, a 400-hundred page volume with five maps, drawn by the author.

His subsequent study of the historical highway and national transportation route across New York State, resulted in the publication of a series of newspaper articles entitled The New York to Buffalo Book. In 1924 Nelson published The Old Mohawk Turnpike Book.

In 1925 he published The Mohawk Valley - Gateway to the West - 1614-1925. This four-volume work, consisting of 1,898 pages of historical information and 1,732 pages of biographical information, is the most comprehensive publication ever produced on the Mohawk Valley.

Noted historian Paul Keesler states in his article "The Much Maligned Mr. Greene," some information in the Greene book has been superseded by later research or was provided incorrectly by local sources. Keesler says, "While researching this book on the Mohawk Valley, I read similar criticism of Greene's work by historians, archaeologists and other authors, so I felt justified in my earlier criticism ["poorly researched" on the basis of reading one article written by Greene]. However, when I read every word of the first two volumes of The Mohawk Valley - Gateway to the West, my appreciation of Greene's work increased dramatically.

"Considering the astounding amount of information he gathered and published in 1925 when communications, travel and publishing technologies were relatively primitive, its amazing how few errors there are in his books. In areas he lacked expertise, such as archaeology and geographical locations in remote areas of the Valley, he relied on local "experts" for information. More often than not, it was these experts that provided the information that future scholars discovered were not accurate.

"In some cases, the information Greene provided was the best available at the time. Since 1925, there have been numerous discoveries that shed new light on the history of the Mohawk Valley. Cases in point are the locations and occupancies of the Mohawk villages prior to 1640. Until recently, some of these sites remained undiscovered and modern dating techniques more accurately determined periods of occupancy at all the known sites. Likewise, historical documents from Canada, France, England and America have been discovered since 1925 that add much to the history of the Valley.

"Perhaps, my new-found respect for Nelson Greene comes from my own efforts to gather information about the Mohawk Valley and the realization that no matter how hard I strive for accuracy, there will be errors in my book. Perhaps, it's because I've learned so much from his writings....It was from Nelson that I learned that if not for the Mohawks and Sir William Johnson, we could well be a part of French speaking Canada, and that the Battle of Oriskany really did affect the outcome of the Revolutionary War."

Bouwlands of Old Schenectady, NY


How the lands purchased by Van Curler from the Mohawks in 1661 were divided among the first proprietors.

When the first Dutch settlers came to the Mohawk Valley, they found native American tribes living there. The Mohawks had established themselves, not only as fierce fighters, but also as settlers on the land. Other tribes also were living in the vicinity, among them Mohicans, Delawares and Schagticoke. These tribes all belonged to the Iroquois division of Eastern Woodland Indians. The nearest village--called "castles" by white settlers--of the Mohicans was on an island where the Mohawk River empties into the Hudson River.

The Iroquois migrated slowly from the west. Some of the settled in the western part of what would later become New York; others lived for a long time in Canada, along the St. Lawrence River. When the French explorer Jacques Cartier arrived, he found many of them living near Montreal. In time, the Iroquois from Canada came southward, driving the Algonquins out of the region. Their castles were west of the site of Schenectady, but they claimed this land and sold it to Arendt Van Curler in 1661.

Old Schenectady, NY

When the Dutch laid out their village, they chose a site near the Mohawk River, where Binne Kill joined it. The village was built with a stockade around it, made of pointed logs placed close together. The sides that touched were hewn flat and the logs were pinned together at the top with wooden pins.

French accounts say there were two main gates; the English accounts say there were three. One was where Front Street and Ferry Street now meet. The gate led to the river and to Niskayuna. The other gate was where Church and State Streets now meet; that was referred to as the South Gate, which led to the gardens and farms. There were undoubtedly smaller gates in the stockade, just large enough for a person to walk through. There was a blockhouse in one angle of the stockade, but it remained unfinished for a time.

The land inside the stockade was not all the settlers owned. They each owned a farm on the flats or on the islands, a pasture to the east of the village and a garden west of Mill Creek. The village was laid out in four blocks or squares. Each square was divided into four plots, with each plot being about 200 feet square. The original town plots were later subdivided as more people arrived to settle there.

List of Original Schenectady, NY, Settlers

From: History of Schenectady, George Rogers Howell and Joel Munsell, 1886, pg 10.

By tradition, it has been said that there were 15 families who signed the original petition to come to Schenectady to live. The original paper seems to have been lost, but by carefully going over the records and deeds, 14 of the original proprietors can be traced. However, one explanation of that 15th signer may be that Harman Albertse Vedder had a half interest in the land granted to Gerrit Bancker. Some of those signers came to Schenectady a few years later and a few never came to occupy their land at all.

Here is the list of the signers of the indenture of 1663, wherein petition was made to have lands surveyed:

1. Arendt Van Curler
2. Alexander Lindsay Glen
3. Philip Hendrickse Brouwer
4. Symon Volkertse Veeder
5. Pieter Adrianse Van Woggelum (never resided)
6. Teunise Cornelise Swart
7. Bastian de Winter (attorney for Catalyn De Vos, widow of Arendt Bradt, who signed the original petition but who died before he could move to Schenectady)
8. Gerrit Bancker
9. William Teller (never resided)
10. Pieter Jacobse Borsboom
11. Pieter Danielse Van Olinda
12. Jan Barentse Wemp (Wemple)
13. Jacques Cornelise Van Slyck
14. Marten Cornelise Van Esselstyn
15. Harmen Albertse Vedder