The Susquehannocks
Robert E. Leutze Eng. 102 December 20, 1956
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The Susquehannocks I.
History of the Susquehannocks A. B. C.
II.
Location of the Susquehannocks A. B.
III.
Previous to 1666 1666 to 1763 1. Many different names 2. Indian Wars (Iroquois) 1763 (Their end)
New York State (North Branch of the Susquehanna River) Pennsylvania (Near the mouth of the Susquehanna River)
Living conditions of the Susquehannocks A. B.
Types of buildings 1. Winter 2. Summer Types of food 1. Vegetables a. Corn b. Melons c. Squash 2. Meat a. Deer b. Bear c. Buffalo d. Wild Fowl
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IV. Artistic works of the Susquehannocks A.
B.
V.
Pottery making 1. Shapes 2. Material 3. Methods Stone work 1. Axes 2. Mullers 3. Knives 4. Arrow heads
Religion of the Susquehannocks A. B. C. D.
Central idea 1. Devil 2. Good Deity Men of religion 1. Priest 2. Shaman Ceremonies 1. Marriage 2. Burial Relation of Mythology to religion
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The Susquehannocks One of the first known races of people to live in Pennsylvania was the Susquehannock Indians. Coming from the west, without the aid of roads or maps, they settled in what is now Pennsylvania. The land to the east of Pennsylvania was unkown to them, but the river valleys of Pennsylvania suited their needs without further exploration. The Susquehannocks were a very humble race of people, yet at one time they were the most feared Indian tribe in the country. They were feared not only by the white man, but the red man as well. The reasons for this can be understood after a look at the Susquehannocks themselves. The Susquehannocks are believed to have come east with the large Lenni Lenape tribe, before the discovery of America. When the Lenni Lenape arrived in the eastern part of Pennsylvania, they split up into three different tribes. The Wolf tribe settled on the lower part of the Susquehanna River; the Turtle tribe in Delaware and the Turkey tribe in upper New York State.1 After a number of years, these three tribes became very independent of each other. They lived quite a distance apart; therefore any bonds between them slowly drifted apart. All three tribes changed their names into the more common names we may recognize. The Turtle tribe became the Delaware; the Turkey tribe became the Iroquois, and the Wolf tribe the Susquehannocks.2
1 2
H. Frank Eshleman, Lancaster County Indians, P. 3. Eshleman, p.4.
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The name Susquehannock is of Algonquian meaning. The Indian name for these people was Saskwe-an-og-sash. This means, “those who live in a place where water is heard grating (or beating) on the shore.�3 The people lived along a river; therefore the river was given a shortened name of the people. The Susquehannocks were known by many different names according to the earliest records kept by the white man. These records, written about 1666, contain the following names for the Susquehannocks: Minquas, Andastoghernons, Grandastogues, Conestogas and Carantouans.4 The reason for so many names comes from the fact that everybody that settled around the Susquehanna River, or that had dealings with the tribe, called them something different. The Indians themselves had different names for the tribe. The upper river Indians were called Andaste; the lower river Indians the Susquehannocks.5 The early records also stress the fact that the Iroquois and the Susquehannocks were continually at war during the seventeenth century.6 An all-out war was not fought during this time; only once in awhile would war parties be sent out against each other. Usually hunting parties would clash during their trips. It was during the years of 1660 to 1674 that the Susquehannocks were at the height of power.7 They numbered about 5,000 warriors during this time.8 3 4 5 6 7 8
Donald W. Cadzow, Archaeological Studies of the Susquehannock Indians, p.15. Cadzow, p.16. Ibid., p.16. Richard Myers, The Long Crooked River, p.49. Cadzow, p.25. John R. Swanton, The Indian Tribes of North America, p.57.
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If at any time they would capture an enemy in one of their many conflicts, they would tie him to a stake to burn. After they started the fire, they would scalp him. Then they would cut pieces of flesh from his body, and eat them while he was still alive.9 This cannibalism was not practiced too frequently during this time, but in earlier days it was a common practice. The Susquehannock’s love of war, and the fierceness with which they fought, made them the most powerful of all Indian nations. The Susquehannocks were very cruel and barbarous to their enemies, but they made friends very easily. Captain John Smith, one of the first white men to leave records of the Susquehannocks, left this description of his first meeting with them in 1669. Sixty Susquehannocks came to us, with skins, bows, Arrows, targets, beads, swords, and tobacco pipes for presents. Such great and well-proportioned men are seldom seen, for they seemed like giants to the English, yea, and to the neighbors, yet seemed of an honest and simple disposition. These are the strangest people of all these countries, both in language and attire: for their language may well become their proportions: sounding from them as a voice in the vault. Their attire is the skins of bears and wolves, some have cossacks made of bear’s heads and skins, that a mans head goes through the skinnest neck.10 The early settlers had no trouble, to speak of, with the Susquehannocks. They seemed very glad to trade furs and other goods with the white man. 9 10
Eshleman, p.63. Myers, pp. 46-47.
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The Susquehannocks had virtually lost all of their power by 1674. Famine and disease had swept through the tribe to decrease their number.11 The war with the Iroquois had also taken its toll of the Susquehannock warriors. Finally, in 1676 the Iroquois conquered the Susquehannocks.12 Many of the defeated tribe were captured by the Iroquois and taken into New York State. The rest fled south to the Roanoke River, only to return a few years later to live in the Conestoga Creek valley of Pennsylvania.13 These Indians were called the Conestogas. The end came for this mighty tribe of Indians in 1763. The remaining twenty Conestogas were killed by white men for massacres they might have committed.14 The Susquehannocks lived along, or near, the Susquehanna River.15 Their reasons for settling along this river were very practical. First, the river offered a very good method of transportation. The canoes they used could traverse the river with no difficulty, thereby making communication easier within the tribe. Secondly, the fish in the river made a very good source of food. Also, the meadows along the river made a natural feeding place for the animals of the forest. The third and probably the most important reason was the flat land along the river for villages.16 This offered a natural campsite for the tribe; along with ample room for the primitive cultivation they did.
11 12 13 14 15 16
Cadzow, p.26. Myers, p.50. Ibid., p.50. Cadzow, p.38. Myers, p.51. Myers, p. 51.
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The main settlement along the Susquehanna River was in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania.17 Here the Susquehannocks found the most suitable spot for their largest village, Susquesahanough.18 Throughout the length of the main river and the North Branch of the Susquehanna River were scattered many smaller villages. The largest of these was Carantouan19 in New York State, not very far from the Pennsylvania border. Although the Susquehannas did have villages in New York State, the largest concentration of the tribe was on the lower part of the river. A peculiar trait of the Susquehannocks was the fact that the summer was the only time they lived in the villages.20 In the fall, the families of the tribe went to their own particular spot. There they built a dome shaped building for use during the winter. This building had either a bark or mat covering21 to keep out the elements. All of the Indian’s possessions were kept inside this building. The summer dwellings of the Susquehannocks were of the same type, only they were rectangular shaped. Poles and bent saplings were used as a framework for these buildings. Then the covering, bark or mat, was fastened to this framework.22 Practically all of the Susquehannock buildings were temporary. The nomadic instinct of the people was partly responsible for their not returning to the same place every fall. Another reason for the temporary buildings was the filth that would accumulate after a short time of living in the hut.23 17 18 19 20 21 22 23
Cadzow, p.62. Myers, p.47. C. Hale Sipe, The Indian Chiefs of Pennsylvania, p.31. Clark Wissler, The American Indian, p.163. Wissler, p. 237. Myers, p.52. Myers. P.54.
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One of the conditions that was considered for a new village site was the availability of flat land around the village. The Susquehannocks were not considered as an agricultural tribe of Indians, but they did have a primitive type of agriculture.24 The flat land around the village would be used as farm land. Beyond this farming land would be the forest, where the Indian had a ready supply of meat. On this farm land, the Indian grew his main source of food, maize. Maize is a type of corn that is very similar to the corn we know today. Also produced in the fields were melons, squash, and tobacco. It was the woman’s work to till the soil, and bring the crops into the village.25 The men were the hunters, and it was beneath their dignity to labor in the fields.26 Corn was used for almost every meal in one form or another. One of the more common forms was corn bread. This bread was carried by the warriors when they were going into battle. The Indian method of making this bread was very simple. First the corn was crushed between two stones. Then the powder was mixed with water to make a dough-like substance. This was made into small cakes, and then wrapped in corn leaves. After baking in a bed of coals, the bread was finished.27 This is only one example of the uses of maize. Along with many others, it is the reason for calling the Susquehannocks, Maize Indians. 24 25 26 27
Ibid., p.53. Myers, p.53. Eshleman, p.63. Ibid., p.22.
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The meat the tribe ate was naturally that of the forest animals. Deer, bear, buffalo, and wild fowl were in abundance where the Susquehannocks lived.28 The men would kill the game, and the woman would carry it back to the village and butcher it. Again, it was beneath the honor of the man to do such work. The Indian woman was also the pottery maker. Up until the white man came to this continent, the women displayed a very unusual talent for making pottery.29 The metal containers of the white man put an end to this work. A large majority of the vessels found in archaeological excavations were found to be, “well made with a globular body, constricted neck, and overhanging or flaring collar, bearing rectilinear incised decorations.”30 Many Iroquois square-topped pots were also found in these excavations. The main use of their pottery was for cooking purposes. One style of pot was for cooking over the fire, and another for serving the food.31 Ceremonial masks and children’s toys were also made from pottery.32 As near as the archaeologists can determine, the Susquehannock’s pottery was made from two different materials. Clay, which the Indians found along the river, and a mixture of shells and sand were ground together to form a paste.33
28 29 30 31 32 33
Wissler, p.237. Cadzow, p.115. Wissler, p.271. Cadzow, p.74. Ibid., p.105. Cadzow, p.104.
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Clay was made into pottery by the following method. Slender rods of clay were first rolled into the desired thickness. The vessel was then built up by coiling the clay into the desired shape. After this, the outside was scraped to make it smooth.34 The paste, made from sand and shells, was used for making small round plates similar to our dinner plates. The plates were formed into the desired shape, then baked by putting into a charcoal fire and covering with coals.35 The Susquehannocks did not excel in the art of stone work.36 The main objects they made were axes, mullers – used for grinding corn -, knives, and arrowheads.37 This work was very primitive and simple. The Indians would form these various objects by whittling down one stone with another. The finished object was usually very brittle; therefore the Indian did not take any pains while making it. Other crafts of the Susquehannocks included basketweaving, carving from bone and antler, and the making of pipes from terra cotta and earthenware.38 There seems to be a difference of opinion concerning the Susquehannocks’ religion. One source said they worshipped the devil. “The Susquehannocks worshipped the devil with a kind of wild imaginary. The world had a maker, but they did not recognize him. The devil was all the God they owned or worshipped.”39 In contrast to this, a Moravian Missionary said the following about the Susquehannock’s religion. 34 35 36 37 38 39
Wissler, p.69. Cadzow, pp. 104-105. Cadzow, p.58. Ibid., p.194 Ibid., p.80 Eshleman, p.64.
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The Indian considered himself as being created by an all powerful, wise and benevolent Mannito; all that he possesses, all that he enjoys, he looks upon as given to him or allotted for his use, by the Great Spirit who gave him life. They also think that he, the great Spirit, made the earth, and all that it contains, for the common good of mankind; when he stocked the country that he gave them with plenty of game, it was not for the benefit of a few, but of all. From this principal, hospitality flows as from its source. With them it is not a virtue, but a strict duty. They gave, and are hospitable to all, without exception and will always share with each other, and often with the stranger, even to their last morsel. They would rather lie down themselves on an empty stomach than have it laid to their charge, that they had neglected their duty by not satisfying the wants of the stranger, the sick, or the needy.40 I believe these two very different views of the Susquehannock’s religion comes from the fact that en enemy of the tribe thought that they worshipped the devil. The missionary, who was a friend of the tribe, wrote the other view. Regardless of who their God was, the Susquehannocks worshipped in a yearly cycle of ceremonies pertaining to the cultivation of maize.41 Along with this yearly cycle, they worshipped the sun, moon, rain, wind, Morningstar and other heavenly phenomena.42 Very few of the Susquehannocks were Christians. Those that were went to the Jesuit Fathers for instruction.43 40 41 42
Myers, pp.54-55. Wissler, p.197. Ibid., p.215.
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43
Eshleman, p.67. There were two men of the tribe that might be called the religious leaders: the Priest and the Shaman.44 The Priest was an intelligent man who was the keeper and demonstrator of the rituals.45 The Shaman was a man that at one time during his life had fasted and prayed, by himself, and received a personal guardian or spirit of power. This power was usually in the form of some kind of animal.46 Medicineman is the common name for a Shaman. “He was called upon to treat the sick and foretell the future. He worked by virtue of some extra-human power.�47
Other than the yearly cycle of ceremonies, there were very few religious ceremonies. Marriage and burial were not associated with religion as they are today. The marriage of an Indian couple was nothing more than the exchange of a kettle of boiled meat for a few beaver skins.48 The couple would consent to the marriage and when this exchange was made, they were married. The burial of a Susquehannock was done by the members of his family. After he died, he would be placed on a platform until only the skeleton remained. The skeleton was then placed in the ground along with many of his personal belongings. Clothes, bow and arrows, food and other items were placed in his grave for his use.49 The mythology of the Susquehannocks was very closely associated with the Iroquoian mythology. Different sections of the country had different myths, but in these sections each tribe had its own way of telling the story.50 44 45 46 47 48 49
Wissler, p.206. Ibid., p.201. Ibid., p.206. Ibid., p.201. Eshleman, p.63. Cadzow, p.93.
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Wissler, p.210. There were two kinds of mythology – namely – past and present.51 The past dealt with the period in which the world was taking shape. 52 An example would be the Indian’s concept of night and day. A cultural hero was closely pursued by an evil spirit. To escape, he gradually cast out the daylight bit by bit.53 The present mythology dealt with the present order of things evolving.54 All of the myths of the Indian world had one universal feature. “The animal and heavenly bodies are endowed with human qualities and are associated with man indiscriminately.”55
The relation of mythology to religion is very plain. The Gods the Indian worshiped all came from this mythology.56 The Susquehannocks played a very important part in the early history of Pennsylvania. A small part of this history is bloodshed, but the remainder has influenced our lives in one way of another. Many roads we travel were at one time Indian trails. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania’s capital, was built on the site of an Indian village.
51 52 53 54 55 56
Ibid., 208. Ibid., 208. Ibid., 209. Ibid., 208. Wissler, p.208 Ibid., p.209.
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List of Works Cited Cadzow, Donald W., Archaeological Studies of the Susquehannock Indians, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Historical Commission, Third Volume, 1936. Eshleman, H. Frank, Lancaster County Indians, Lancaster, Express Printing Co., 1909. Myers, Richmond, The Long Crooked River, Boston, The Christopher Publishing House, 1949. Sipe, C. Hale, The Indian Chiefs of Pennsylvania, Butler, Ziegler Printing Co., 1927. Swanton, John R., The Indian Tribes of North America, Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of Enthnology, Bulletin 145, Washington, United States Government Printing Office, 1953. Wissler, Clark, Indians of the U.S., The American Indian, Third Edition, New York, Peter Smith, 1950.