BULL. 30] 



TUSCAEORA 



847 



total defeat and dispersion of the hostile 

 Tuscarora and their allies in 1713, the 

 scattered fragments of tribes fled and 

 soiightan asylum with other tribes, among 

 whom their identity was not always main- 

 tained. Although tlie Five Nations gave 

 asylum to the fugitive Tuscarora, there is 

 also abundant evidence that, for political 

 reasons perhaps, the Tuscarora were not 

 for many years after their flight from 

 North Carolina formally admitted into 

 the Council Board of the League of the 

 Five Nations as a constitutive member. 

 The fact is that the Tuscarora were 90 

 years in removing from their North Caro- 

 lina home to more friendly dwelling- 

 places in the N., and there is no evidence 

 that they were formally incorporated into 

 tlie confederation of the Five Nations, as 

 a coequal member, before Sept. 1722. On 

 Sept. 6, 1722, Gov. Burnet held a confer- 

 ence with the Five Nations at Albany, at 

 which Governor Spotswood of Virginia 

 was present. For the purpose of pre- 

 venting forays between the Five Nations 

 and their allies on the one hand, and the 

 Southern Indians on the other, Spots- 

 wood induced the Five Nations to consent 

 to the running of a dividing line along 

 the Potomac and the high ridge of the 

 Allegany mtns. This agreement was 

 made in the name of the Five Nations 

 and the Tuscarora, indicating that the 

 latter had become a factor in the councils 

 of the League of the Iroquois. In closing 

 the conference, it is stated that the 

 Indians "gave six shouts — five for the 

 Five Nations and one for the castle of 

 Tuscaroras, lately seated between the 

 Oneidas and Onondagas." The record 

 continues that at the conclusion of this 

 conference, on Sept. 13, the Five Nations 

 sought a special interview with the 

 Governor of Pennsylvania, and that on 

 Sept. 14 the governor received " the ten 

 chiefs of the Five Nations, being two 

 from each, together with two others, said 

 to beof the Tuscororoes." Tliis appears 

 to be the first oflicial mention of the Tus- 

 carora as taking part in the management 

 of the public affairs of the League. The 

 Tuscarora mentioned here, however, did 

 not include those who dwelt on the 

 Juniata and on the Susquehanna at 

 Oquaga and its environs, nor those still in 

 North Carolina. 



In a petition of John Armstrong for 

 land lying in Tuscarora valley on Juniata 

 r., Pa., about 6 m. from the mouth of 

 Tuscarora cr., the Indians living there at 

 that time are called Lakens; this land 

 was taken up by Armstrong on Feb. 3, 

 1755. On the same day, George Arm- 

 strong obtained a warrant for land situ- 

 ated on the s. side of Tuscarora cr., "op- 

 posite to the settlement of the Indians 

 called Lackens." It would thus appear 



that at this date this band of Tuscarora 

 were known, at least locally, as Lakens or 

 Lackens. 



Elias Johnson, in his Legends, says that 

 it was the Seneca who first adopted the 

 Tuscarora as a constituent member of the 

 League. This, however, is at variance 

 with the common but authentic tradi- 

 tions of all the ti-ibesand witli the otficial 

 statement of Col. (afterward Sir) William 

 Johnson to the Oneida, made at Mt John- 

 son, Sept. 8, 1753. He said, "Brethren 

 of Oneida. . . . My best advice is to 

 have your castles as near together as you 

 conveniently can with the Tuscaroras, 

 who belong to you as children, and the 

 Scanihaderadighroones lately come into 

 your alliance or families, which makes it 

 necessary for me to fix a new string to 

 the cradle which was hung up by your 

 forefathers when they received the Tus- 

 caroras, ... to feed and protect." 



After the close of the war of 1711-1:5 in 

 North Carolina, the neutral Tuscarora, 

 with remnants of allied tribes still re- 

 maining in that country, were placed 

 under the rule of chief Tom Blunt, or 

 Blount, by treaty with the provincial 

 government of North Carolina. From 

 an act of the general assembly of North 

 Carolina, in 1778, it is learned that With- 

 mell Tuffdick was then the ruling chief; 

 but the last ruling chief of the North 

 Carolina Tuscarora was Samuel Smith, 

 who died in 1802. 



In 1 767, the renown of the Moravian 

 mission station at Friedenshuetten (q. v.) 

 in Pennsylvania was so great that many 

 Indians from various tribes, including 

 the Tuscarora, probably from Oquaga, 

 Ingaren, and vicinity, were constantly 

 stopping there. Many passed tlirough it 

 merely to see a nlace so famous for its 

 hospitality. In May, 1766, 75 Tuscarora, 

 according to Loskiel, on tlieir w'ay from 

 North Carolina, halted here and remained 

 for some weeks. They are described as 

 lazy and " refuse to hear religion." Dur- 

 ing their stay the Tuscarora were so 

 alarmed at the sight of the first snow that 

 they left their huts down by the river 

 and took refuge with the missionaries. 

 A number of Tuscarora arrived at the 

 mission to remain there; these had 

 planted their crops during 1766 at the 

 mouth of Tuscarora cr. , Wyoming co., Pa.» 



On Dec. 16, 1766, Sir William Johnson 

 received at Mt Johnson, N.. Y., 160 Tus- 

 carora who had just arrived from North 

 Carolina. They complained to him that 

 on thei r way th ither they had been robbed 

 at Paxtang, in Pennsylvania, of their 

 horses and other propertj^ to the value 

 of about $300. 



Later the Tuscarora on the Susque- 

 hanna, dwelling at Oquaga .and in its 

 vicinity, had lands assigned them by the 



