Onaquaga
Encyclopedia
Onaquaga was a large Iroquois
village, located on both sides of the Susquehanna River
near present-day Windsor, New York
. During the American Revolutionary War
, the Continental Army
destroyed it and nearby Unadilla
in October 1778 in retaliation for the British and Iroquois attack on German Flatts
.
, one of the Five Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy. The Iroquoian-speaking Tuscarora
people joined in outlying settlements when they migrated north from South Carolina and became the Sixth Nation of the confederacy in 1722. In 1753, Nanticoke
refugees from Virginia
also moved into the village.
Following the 1768 Treaty of Fort Stanwix
, Mohawks
were forced north and west and a number settled in Onaquaga, just west of the treaty line. They were prosperous, had some cattle and poultry, gardens, and fruit trees. Many of the inhabitants were Christians. By the time of the American Revolution
, representatives from all of the Six Nations
, a group of Algonquian
-speaking Lenape
people, and also a number of Loyalists lived in Onaquaga.
The Ouaquaga Lenticular Truss Bridge
was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 2003.
, who spelled the name of the village Oghwaga, included this footnote in his 1901 work The Old New York Frontier:
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
village, located on both sides of the Susquehanna River
Susquehanna River
The Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At long, it is the longest river on the American east coast that drains into the Atlantic Ocean, and with its watershed it is the 16th largest river in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United...
near present-day Windsor, New York
Windsor (town), New York
Windsor is a town in Broome County, New York, United States. The population was 6,421 at the 2000 census.The Town of Windsor is on the south border of the county and is east of Binghamton. The town also includes a village named Windsor, located on the Susquehanna River...
. During the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
destroyed it and nearby Unadilla
Unadilla (village), New York
Unadilla is a village located in the Town of Unadilla in Otsego County, New York, USA. The population was 1,127 at the 2000 census.The Village of Unadilla is located in the south part of the town, southwest of Oneonta...
in October 1778 in retaliation for the British and Iroquois attack on German Flatts
Attack on German Flatts
Attack on German Flatts may refer to one of two raids on the settlement of German Flatts, New York that is now called Herkimer owing to an 18th century surveying error :...
.
Population
Onaquaga was originally home to members of the Oneida tribeOneida tribe
The Oneida are a Native American/First Nations people and are one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy in the area of upstate New York...
, one of the Five Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy. The Iroquoian-speaking Tuscarora
Tuscarora (tribe)
The Tuscarora are a Native American people of the Iroquoian-language family, with members in New York, Canada, and North Carolina...
people joined in outlying settlements when they migrated north from South Carolina and became the Sixth Nation of the confederacy in 1722. In 1753, Nanticoke
Nanticoke Indian Tribe
The Nanticoke people are an indigenous American Algonquian people, whose traditional homelands are in Chesapeake Bay and Delaware. Today they live in the northeast United States, especially Delaware; in Canada; and in Oklahoma.-History:...
refugees from Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
also moved into the village.
Following the 1768 Treaty of Fort Stanwix
Treaty of Fort Stanwix
The Treaty of Fort Stanwix was an important treaty between North American Indians and the British Empire. It was signed in 1768 at Fort Stanwix, located in present-day Rome, New York...
, Mohawks
Mohawk nation
Mohawk are the most easterly tribe of the Iroquois confederation. They call themselves Kanien'gehaga, people of the place of the flint...
were forced north and west and a number settled in Onaquaga, just west of the treaty line. They were prosperous, had some cattle and poultry, gardens, and fruit trees. Many of the inhabitants were Christians. By the time of the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
, representatives from all of the Six Nations
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
, a group of Algonquian
Algonquian languages
The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
-speaking Lenape
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
people, and also a number of Loyalists lived in Onaquaga.
The Ouaquaga Lenticular Truss Bridge
Ouaquaga Lenticular Truss Bridge
Ouaquaga Lenticular Truss Bridge is a historic Lenticular truss bridge located at Ouaquaga in the towns of Windsor and Colesville in Broome County, New York. It was constructed in 1888 and spans the Susquehanna River. It is composed of two identical through trusses with an overall length of 343 feet...
was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 2003.
Alternate spellings
Historian Francis Whiting HalseyFrancis Whiting Halsey
Francis Whiting Halsey was an American journalist, editor and historian, born in Unadilla, New York. He was the son of Dr. Gaius Leonard Halsey, a Civil War surgeon, and Juliet Halsey. He was the grandson of Dr...
, who spelled the name of the village Oghwaga, included this footnote in his 1901 work The Old New York Frontier:
- Spelled in almost every conceivable manner. Among the forms are Oneaquaga, Oughquagy, Onoaughquagey, Ononghquage, Auquauga, Anaquaga, Oughquogey, Anaquegha, Onaquaga, Aughquagee, Ochquaga, Aughquagey, Oquaca, Oguaga, Anaquaqua, Oquage, and Okwaha. The form Okwaho is used in the Marcoux Dictionary, which gives the meaning wolf. This was a term applied to one of the Mohawk tribes. Gideon HawleyGideon HawleyGideon Hawley was a missionary to the Iroquois Indians in Massachusetts and on the Susquehanna River in New York.-Biography:He was born in the Stratfield section of Stratford, now Bridgeport, Connecticut, in New England on November 5, 1727. The son of Gideon Hawley and Hannah Bennett who was the...
wrote Onohoghquage. Dr. O’Callaghan employed the form Oghquaga. For the present village in the town of Colesville, the spelling is Ouaquaga. At Deposit a hotel uses for its name the form Oquaga, which is also employed for a small lake of this name. The northerly branch of the Delaware has been called the Coquago branch. Wilkinson wrote Oquago, and WashingtonGeorge WashingtonGeorge Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
Anaquaga. Stone adopted the form Oghkwaga. Sir William Johnson wrote Oghquago – though not always. BrantJoseph BrantThayendanegea or Joseph Brant was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. He was perhaps the most well-known American Indian of his generation...
, after the battle of Minisink, used the form Oghwage. BrantJoseph BrantThayendanegea or Joseph Brant was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. He was perhaps the most well-known American Indian of his generation...
was a Mohawk Indian who knew how to spell. The word is pronounced in three syllables. In order to secure such pronunciation the author has taken the liberty of converting Brant’s final "e" into an "a," making it Oghwaga. A. Cusick told Dr. Beauchamp he thought the word meant place of hulled-corn soup.