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  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  The 
  early 
  writers 
  treat 
  their 
  recent 
  residence 
  on 
  the 
  St 
  Law- 
  

   rence 
  as 
  a 
  well 
  known 
  fact, 
  but 
  some 
  mention 
  Algonquins 
  who 
  

   were 
  present 
  at 
  the 
  founding 
  of 
  Montreal 
  in 
  1642. 
  One 
  said 
  his 
  

   grandfather 
  lived 
  there, 
  and 
  added 
  : 
  " 
  The 
  Hurons, 
  who 
  were 
  then 
  

   our 
  enemies, 
  chased 
  our 
  ancestors 
  from 
  this 
  country 
  ; 
  some 
  

   retired 
  toward 
  the 
  land 
  of 
  the 
  Abnaquiois, 
  the 
  others 
  to 
  the 
  land 
  

   of 
  the 
  Iroquois, 
  and 
  one 
  part 
  turned 
  to 
  the 
  Hurons 
  themselves, 
  

   uniting 
  with 
  them, 
  and 
  behold 
  the 
  land 
  was 
  made 
  almost 
  a 
  

   desert." 
  This 
  either 
  combines 
  the 
  expulsion 
  of 
  the 
  Iroquois 
  

   with 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  Algonquins, 
  or 
  makes 
  it 
  precede 
  this, 
  and 
  agrees 
  

   with 
  the 
  Huron 
  account 
  that 
  they 
  received 
  another 
  nation 
  about 
  

   1590, 
  making 
  due 
  allowance 
  for 
  Indian 
  dates. 
  Indeed 
  those 
  

   Algonquins 
  who 
  went 
  to 
  the 
  Iroquois 
  may 
  have 
  inflamed 
  them 
  

   against 
  the 
  great 
  body 
  of 
  the 
  Hurons, 
  and 
  thus 
  led 
  to 
  war. 
  

  

  These 
  early 
  references 
  to 
  the 
  exodus 
  of 
  the 
  Mohawks 
  from 
  

   Canada 
  have 
  recently 
  had 
  the 
  aid 
  of 
  archeology, 
  and 
  one 
  ques- 
  

   tion 
  now 
  is, 
  what 
  evidences 
  of 
  early 
  Iroquois 
  occupation 
  does 
  

   the 
  lower 
  Mohawk 
  valley 
  present? 
  There 
  are 
  camps 
  and 
  graves, 
  

   and 
  some 
  insignificant 
  hamlets 
  belonging 
  to 
  prehistoric 
  times 
  

   and 
  of 
  brief 
  occupancy. 
  But 
  three 
  prehistoric 
  forts 
  are 
  known, 
  in 
  

   two 
  of 
  which 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  ornaments 
  of 
  European 
  make 
  have 
  been 
  

   found. 
  Both 
  of 
  these 
  forts 
  are 
  north 
  of 
  the 
  river, 
  and 
  both 
  are 
  

   distinctly 
  related 
  to 
  the 
  succeeding 
  historic 
  towns. 
  The 
  third 
  is 
  

   a 
  few 
  miles 
  south 
  of 
  the 
  Mohawk, 
  and 
  was 
  at 
  first 
  said 
  to 
  yield 
  

   European 
  articles, 
  but 
  later 
  explorers 
  have 
  found 
  none. 
  Its 
  

   relics 
  have 
  not 
  such 
  distinct 
  relations 
  to 
  succeeding 
  town 
  sites, 
  

   but 
  its 
  Iroquois 
  character 
  is 
  clear. 
  These 
  are 
  all 
  the 
  town 
  sites 
  

   known 
  to 
  belong 
  to 
  the 
  New 
  York 
  Mohawks 
  of 
  precolonial 
  times. 
  

   It 
  is 
  possible 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  more 
  may 
  be 
  found. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  well 
  known 
  that 
  the 
  Mohawks 
  once 
  had 
  three 
  tribal 
  

   towns, 
  one 
  for 
  each 
  of 
  their 
  three 
  clans, 
  differing 
  in 
  this 
  from 
  

   the 
  other 
  Iroquois, 
  but 
  this 
  feature 
  did 
  not 
  last 
  long. 
  It 
  is 
  also 
  

   well 
  known 
  that 
  early 
  Iroquois 
  towns 
  changed 
  their 
  sites 
  every 
  

   10 
  or 
  15 
  years 
  on 
  an 
  average. 
  Making 
  the 
  removal 
  of 
  these 
  three 
  

   occur 
  in 
  1600, 
  and 
  allowing 
  them 
  ,a 
  period 
  of 
  20 
  years, 
  their 
  set- 
  

   tlement 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  about 
  1580. 
  Another 
  20 
  years 
  or 
  less 
  

  

  