The Iroquois People of the LonghouseMr. Davison

Flag of the Iroquois Confederacyhttp://hometown.aol.com/Donh523/navapage/iroquois.htm

People of the Longhouse

People of Turtle Island

Early Inhabitants of Western New York

Several cultures lived in Western NYClovis people (10,000 B.C.)Lamokas (3,500 – 2,500 B.C.)Hopewell Indians (300 A.D.) – mound

builders, Wenros and NeutralsIroquoian people (next 1,000 years)

What’s in a Name

Iroquois means “real adder” – a kind of snake. Name given as a backhanded compliment by their rivals the Algonquians

Iroquois – name given by the FrenchSix Nations – name given by the BritishHau de no sau nee – meaning people

building a long house – sometimes translated as people of the long house

League of the Five Nations

SenecaCayugaOnondagaOneidaMohawk

Remember the Tribes: SCOOM

S – Seneca – people of the Great Hill (Onodowaga)

C – Cayuga – people of the Great Swamp or the Great Pipe

O – Onondaga – people of the HillsO – Oneida – People of the Standing StoneM – Mohawk – People of the FlintT – Tuscarora – shirt wearing people – added

to the confederacy later

Iroquoian Life

Great AbundanceSurvived on fish, game, cultivated foodLarge population, perhaps greater than

present day population of WNYMost natives lived south of present day

Routs 5 & 20 (Broadway) – offered families protection away from warpaths along the Great Lakes

The Five Nations & Their Position in the Iroquois Confederacy

Seneca – the Elder Brother and Keepers of the Western Door

Cayuga – Younger BrotherOnondaga – Fire Keepers – the council

fireOneida – Younger BrotherMohawk – Elder Brother and Keepers

of the Eastern Door

Location In Western New York

Known Indian Villages existed at:OakfieldElmaBuffaloBig TreeTwo Villages in Akron – one at Falkirk

(upper East Ave.) and a second at today’s Brooklyn St

Where Would You Live?

Village surrounded by oval shaped stockade (20 ft. tall fence)

Farm fields surrounds villageInside stockade, rows of

buildings-LONGHOUSES

Longhouse Village Image From: Bridgeman Art Library, London/New York, http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefMedia.aspx?refid=701508371&artrefid=761552484&sec=-1&pn=1

The Iroquois Village

Iroquois Shelter

Iroquois Homes were called longhouses

Longhouses were built in groups or villages for protection.

Made of logs- covered with elm bark

Curved roof made of saplings No windows Fire holes in roof to let out

smoke from cooking fires 15 - 20 feet tall, 20 feet wide and

50 – 150 feet long

Picture of the Longhouse

Inside the Longhouse

Center aisle from one end to the otherNear doors- food storage barrels and stacks of

firewoodOn the sides of the aisle, compartments 13 feet

by 16 feet (half of your classroom)Wooden platforms for sleeping and storageFire shared with family across the aisleEach family has their own clothing, blankets, tools

and cooking utensils

Inside the longhouse contd.

Family Structure

Fireside Family: your parents, brothers and sisters – Matriarchal structure

Longhouse Family:– oldest woman in the longhouse is the head of family and

everyone in the longhouse is related to her– You always belong to your mother’s longhouse family

Clan Family:– two or more longhouse families make up a clan– You belong to your mother’s clan– Clans named after animals (wolf, bear, turtle)– Head of clan was the oldest most respected woman

Clans of the Iroquois

Clans

Bear: taught us gentleness and strength. It takes more strength not to raise your hand to strike someone than it does to strike them.

Turtle: taught us patience, never to give up. Seen as strength and solidarity, old and wise, and well respected.

Wolf: taught us to use our ears and be watchful.Strong sense of family.

Deer: Hawk: Snipe”

Iroquoian Food

Lots of vegetables, fruit, nuts and different kinds of meat and fish

Women grew corn, beans and squash (The Three Sisters) in fields surrounding village

Hunters brought home deer, bear, beaver, rabbit, and wild turkey

Iroquois men and boys were skilled fishermen

You’d eat breakfast together with your family, but other meals on your own-mother would have a pot cooking all day

The three Sisters

Iroquoian Economy

The Iroquois – money is called wampum when trading with white men.

They have very little money – barter economy.

They go great distances to trade with other tribes.

The wampum was made of beads and clamshells.

Iroquois Economy

Wampum belts were used as a form of communication between Indian tribes. Wampum belts would be made into pictures showing the reason it was made. All Indian messengers carry wampum when going to other tribes.

Hiawatha Wampum Belt

Iroquoian Clothing

Deerskins that the women tanned, cut and sewed by hand

Women: long skirts decorated with beads, porcupine quills dyed red, blue or yellow (sometimes leggings under their skirts), vest or blouse on top

Men: kilt-like skirts over leggings and vests or blouses made of decorated deerskins

Everyone wore moccasins-made of one piece of deerskin sewn together with a deer-bone needle and using sinew from the deer for thread

Iroquois Clothing

Women prepared the hides by removing the hair and flesh with stone scrapers. Men in the winter wore robes or cloaks made from bear, deer, buffalos, or beaver skins.

Women soaked the hides in dilution of boiled deer brain to soften them.

Men's summer clothing were made from buckskin and men's winter outfits were leggings,

breechclouts, kilts, and moccasins. Image of Traditional Dress from: http://www.u.arizona.edu/ic/kmartin/School/iroqcloth.htm

Clothing

What about work?

Work was a part of everyday life Every job was respected Work depended on the season:

– Spring: peel bark for longhouses and canoes, tap trees for syrup, pick strawberries, and fish

– When the ground was ready, you would plant seeds for all the vegetables

– Late summer and fall: harvest crops and prepare them for storage

– Fall: begin hunting– Winter: make and repair clothing, tools, bowls, baskets and

instruments

Who did which jobs?

Men: – made tools for hunting, sports equipment and

musical instruments– Made wampum and carved bowls, cups, pipes– Cleared farmland– Hunted for animals

Women– Made clay pots, baskets, cradleboards, clothing and

moccasins– Farmed the fields– Cooked the food

Woven Baskets

Education

You would not go any formal schoolYou learned by watching adults do their

jobsYou learned history when the elders told

stories at the festivals and during the long winter months

You also learned from your own experiences

Iroquoian Games

Everyone loved sports and gamesGames were played at festivals and

celebrationsSometimes one village or clan

challenged anotherLacrosse (called “the ball game”) was

the most popularRunning was also an important sportSnow-snake was popular in the winter

Iroquois Games

The Bowl Game is played by putting peach pits in a bowl and two teams take turns thumping the bowl to make the object fly upward. The Snow Snake game is played by throwing a spear into the snow. The of the game is to see how far the spears could be thrown across the snow. The Double Ball Game is played with buckskin bags filled with sand, then connecting the buckskin bags with a cord you try to throw it three feet in the air. Shinny is played with a flattened buckskin ball, then each player had a long stick and tried to hit the flattened buckskin ball.

Iroquoian Games contd.

Running games and mock battles were enjoyed as well.

Survival lessons were often taught through the games.

Men played against men and women played against women. Children were left to amuse themselves with their running and jumping contests.The children often copied adult games.

Lacrosse

What if you got sick?

Iroquois believed that you could get sick from bad food or water or air or by catching someone else’s disease

They also believed that you could become sick because of witchcraft of bad people or by the work of evil spirits

There were different kinds of healers to treat you depending on your illness

False Face Society

A medicine society like the False Face Society would try to heal you by performing special rituals.– You never paid the healers. You just gave them sacred

tobacco or kinds of food they liked– If you were cured, you became a member of the society

and helped to treat others If you broke an arm or leg, then you were treated by a

surgeon. – The Iroquois were excellent surgeons who not only set

broken bones, but also understood the importance of cleanliness

If you had a cold or snakebite, you were probably treated by an herbalist who would use plants to heal you

False Face Masks

Some Religious Beliefs

The Iroquois believed the Creator, or Great Spirit made the world

Almost all natural things were under the care of spirits (there were spirits of the wind, rain, trees)

Keepers of the Faith were in charge of religious festivals (these were ordinary people with special responsibilities- they would organize the festivals and perform some of the rituals)

Religious ceremonies could last for hours and some festivals lasted for days.

Festivals

At all ceremonies, sacred tobacco was burned. There were day-long ceremonies of speeches, prayer, music, dances, games and always a feast.

Six main festivals held throughout the year– Maple Festival-(early spring) gave thanks for the return of

spring and to the maple tree for its “sweet waters” There would be maple syrup and candies

– Planting Festival- (later in spring) gave thanks for the return of the planting season and ask for blessings on the seeds

– Strawberry Festival- (late may or early June) celebrated the return of the first fruits of the earth. After the long winter, it was a sweet beginning to a new year.

Festivals contd.

– Green Corn Festival- usually held in August(lasted four days) gave thanks to the spirits of the Three Sisters when the corn, beans and squash were ready to eat. Children born since the Midwinter festival would be given names

– Harvest Festival-(early October) crops are all picked, cooked and stored for winter eating (lasted four days)

– Midwinter or New Year’s Festival (early February) The longest festival (seven days) Two elders visited every house to announce the new year. Children born since the Green Corn festival would be given names. The Thanksgiving address lasted for hours.

European Wars Cause Problems

Trade wars of France & England (so called French & Indian War in North America)

Revolutionary War – American War for Independence (1776 – 1783)

Both wars caused the various tribes to choose sides.

1797 Big Tree Treaty -11 reservations created and Canandaigua Lake and Genesee River regions vacated

Before the League existed the Five nations were always at war with one another. Village fought village Nation fought nation

It was called the time of “great sorrow and terror”Deganawidah (the Peacemaker) brought the message that by ending war among themselves, the nations would be strong and the people would be safe. The story tells that the people uprooted the tallest pine tree and threw all their weapons of war into the hole and then replanted this Great Tree of Peace. Now the Five Nations live in a Great Longhouse, keeping its own fire, but living in peace under one roof

Iroquois Government: The Oldest Living Participatory Government on Earth

League of Five Nations

The longhouse and the Great Pine Tree are the symbols of the Iroquois League

The Peacemaker took one arrow from each tribe and tied them together. You can break one arrow, but the bundle of five is too strong to destroy, he said.

The Iroquois League is one of the world’s longest lasting unions

The Great Law of Peace

The unwritten Iroquois ConstitutionSome ideas of the Great Law:

– All Iroquois land was open to members of Five nations. It was safe to travel and hunt that land

– Women as well as men participated in government. Women appointed the chiefs and removed them if necessary

– Freedom of religion was guaranteed to all– No such thing as slavery- if you were taken

prisoner by the Iroquois your were either killed or adopted an if adopted, you had all the freedoms as everyone else

The Iroquois Government

Each nation had its own governmentEach nation sent chiefs to League council meetings

(chiefs could not be warriors)Council met once a year to discuss anything that

concerned all the nationsEveryone had to agree to all decisions (votes must be

unanimous) If they did all agree then the chief conducting the

meeting cloud say the League could now “speak with one voice” If someone disagreed, they would discuss it again until they came to an agreement

Great Tree of Peace

Iroquois Impact on American Government – The Albany Plan of Union

We Learn from the Iroquois

Iroquois Art

Dream catchers made of willow and sinew are for children and there not meant to last. Eventually the willow dries out and the tension of the sinew collapses the dream catcher.

“False-face” mask, made from wood carved from a tree. Photo from: Charles Gatewood/Art Resource, NYhttp://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefMedia.aspx?refid=461530384&artrefid=761552484&sec=-1&pn=1

http://www.rootsweb.com/~nwa/dreamcatcher.jpg

Iroquois Transportation

Most movement by the Iroquois was done on foot. Messages were sent by runners.

Iroquois used canoes, dogs carts, and cradle boards to carry infants.

They built their transportation with wood, birch bark, elm bark, shag bark, hickory,white ash, and cedar.

Tyandaneega – Joseph Brandt

Cornplanter - seneca

Chief Red Jacket (Sagoyewatha) 1757- 1830

Ely Parker - Seneca

Chief Oren Lyons

Naho

Native American Internet Resources:

An excellent resource with many links can be found at:

http://www.dist126.k12.il.us/powwow/resources.htm

Instructor’s Notes

•The Wenro

Instructor’s Notes contd.

•The Seneca

Instructor’s Notes contd.

The Mohawk

Instructor’s notes contd.

•The Cayuga