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36-470: The Huron community on the Draper Site expanded at least five times over some thirty years beginning around 1525. At its largest, it had a total of 35 longhouses that held up to 2000 people. They were located on four hectares of land, and the settlement was fortified with multiple rows of wooden palisades . The expansion of this village coincided with the abandonment of smaller villages in the area. In

72-556: A meeting of village leaders in a "Kind of State-House of about 90 Feet [27 m] long, with a light Cover of Bark in which they hold their Councils." The indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest of North America also built a form of longhouse. Theirs were built with logs or split-log frame, and covered with split log planks, and sometimes an additional bark cover. Cedar is the preferred lumber. The wealthy built extraordinarily large longhouses. Old Man House , built by

108-574: A member of one clan can only marry someone outside of their clan. On March 11, 2005, the Onondaga Nation in the town of Onondaga, New York , filed a land rights action in federal court, seeking acknowledgment of title to over 3,000 square miles (7,800 km ) of ancestral lands centering in Syracuse, New York . They hoped to obtain increased influence over environmental restoration efforts at Onondaga Lake and other EPA Superfund sites in

144-452: A typical longhouse was about 24.4 by 5.5 by 5.5 m (80 by 18 by 18 ft) and was meant to house up to twenty or more families, most of whom were matrilineally related. The people had a matrilineal kinship system, with property and inheritance passed through the maternal line. Children were born into the mother's clan. Protective palisades were built around the dwellings; these stood 4.3 to 4.9 m (14 to 16 ft) high, keeping

180-551: A whale. Benches and looms were inlaid with shell, and there were other indications of wealth. A single house had five separate living areas centered on cooking hearths; each had artifacts that revealed aspects of the former occupants' lives. More bows and arrows were found at one living area than any of the others, an indication that hunters lived there. Another had more fishing gear than other subsistence equipment, and at another, more harpoon equipment. Some had everyday work gear, and few elaborately ornamented things. The whaler's corner

216-592: Is determined by their matrilineal lineage, meaning that clan membership is inherited from the mother. Membership in the Onondaga is also exclusively inherited matrilineally. The clan system extends throughout the Haudenosaunee, and clan members from other nations are considered family. In total there are nine clans: Onondaga peoples believe it is their duty to help and support their clan in tough times, sickness, and death. Interclan marriages are mandatory, so

252-1069: The Algonquian peoples , such as the Lenni Lenape , who lived from western New England in Connecticut , along the lower Hudson River , and along the Delaware River and both sides of the Delaware Bay . The Pamunkey of the Algonquian-speaking Powhatan Confederacy in Virginia also built longhouses. Although the Shawnee were not known to build longhouses, colonist Christopher Gist describes how, during his visit to Lower Shawneetown in January 1751, he and Andrew Montour addressed

288-649: The American Revolutionary War , the Onondaga were at first officially neutral, although individual Onondaga warriors were involved in at least one raid on American settlements. After Americans attacked their main village on April 20, 1779, the Onondaga later sided with the majority of the League and fought against the American colonists in alliance with the British . In 1779, George Washington ordered

324-458: The Haida , Tsimshian , Tlingit Makah , Clatsop , Coast Salish and Multnomah . From beneath mudflows dating back to about 1700, archaeologists have recovered timbers and planks. In the part of one house where a woodworker lived, tools were found and also tools in all stages of manufacture. There were even wood chips. Where a whaler lived, there lay harpoons and also a wall screen carved with

360-480: The Northeastern United States as well as Central Canada ( Ontario and Quebec ), built and inhabited longhouses. These were sometimes more than 75 m (246 ft) in length but generally around 5 to 7 m (16 to 23 ft) wide. Scholars believe walls were made of sharpened and fire-hardened poles (up to 1,000 saplings for a 50 m (160 ft) house) driven close together into

396-651: The Suquamish , at what became the Port Madison Squamish Reservation , was 152 by 12–18 m (500 by 40–60 ft), c. 1850. Usually one doorway faces the shore. Each longhouse contains a number of booths along both sides of the central hallway, separated by wooden containers (akin to modern drawers). Each booth has its own individual hearth and fire. Usually an extended family occupied one longhouse, and cooperated in obtaining food, building canoes, and other daily tasks. The gambrel roof

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432-741: The "Keepers of the Fire" ( Kayečisnakwe’nì·yu in Tuscarora ) in the figurative longhouse that shelters the Five Nations. The Cayuga and Seneca have territory to their west and the Oneida and Mohawk to their east. For this reason, the League of the Iroquois historically met at the Iroquois government's capital at Onondaga , as the traditional chiefs do today. In the United States,

468-547: The Confederacy. The Onondaga were known as the guardians or watchkeepers of the league. They were keepers of the law in order to preserve traditions and institutions. The culture hero Hyenwatha was an Onondaga Indian and was essential in the early organization of the league. The title of Tadodaho was always held by an Onondaga chief; he was to be the chief arbitrator of the Lords of the Confederacy. The Onondaga maintained

504-602: The Mantle Site circa 1550 to establish the so-called Ratcliff Site and the Aurora Site , to the north-west in what is today the Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville . New analysis in 2018 established that the Mantle Site was active from 1587 to 1623. In early 1975 and 1978, the largely undisturbed Draper Site was completely excavated. This archeological work was to explore and salvage artifacts and evidence in preparation for

540-523: The Onondaga brood) is commemorated by the Onondaga as though it were an intervention by the Creator to ensure their survival after such a traumatizing, catastrophic event. On November 11, 1794, the Onondaga Nation, along with the other Haudenosaunee nations, signed the Treaty of Canandaigua with the United States, in which their right to their homeland was acknowledged by the United States in article II of

576-629: The Thunder and a feast of strawberries. The Green Bean Dance comes when the green beans are fit for use. This day there are dances for the Thunder and a mixture of war and feather dances. The Green Corn dance always comes after the Green Bean dance. This day there are three days for religious services, one for the children, one for the Four Persons, one for the Holder of the heavens, and one for

612-538: The Thunder with the feast. The Onondaga's Thanksgiving feast in October closely resembled the Green Corn Dance. The Onondaga peoples place great emphasis on giving thanks, and this is reflected in their ceremonies. Ceremonial songs would be performed in the longhouse, and danced to in a counter-clockwise direction since this is the life-providing direction of Mother Earth, moon, and stars. The more spirited

648-825: The United States. According to oral tradition, the Great Peacemaker approached the Onondaga and other tribes to found the Haudenosaunee . The tradition tells that at the time the Seneca nation debated joining the Haudenosaunee based on the Great Peacemaker's teachings, a solar eclipse took place. The most likely eclipse visible in the area was in 1142 AD. This oral tradition is supported by archeological studies. Carbon dating of particular sites of Onondaga habitation shows dates starting close to 1200AD ± 60 years with growth for hundreds of years. In

684-633: The claimed area. The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected the Onondagas' claim in 2012, and the Supreme Court in 2013 declined to hear an appeal. On June 29, 2022, 1,023 acres of land were returned to the Onondaga Nation. On September 30, 2024, 1,000 acres of land were returned to the Onondaga Nation. The Onondaga very much enjoyed sports and physical activity. Lacrosse and foot races were always known to be favorites of

720-556: The destruction of the site during the construction of the Pickering Airport . Longhouses of the indigenous peoples of North America Longhouses were a style of residential dwelling built by Native American and First Nations peoples in various parts of North America. Sometimes separate longhouses were built for community meetings. The Iroquois (Haudenosaunee or "People of the Longhouses"), who reside in

756-567: The ground. Strips of bark were woven horizontally through the lines of poles to form more or less weatherproof walls. Poles were set in the ground and braced by horizontal poles along the walls. The roof is made by bending a series of poles, resulting in an arc-shaped roof. This was covered with leaves and grasses. The frame is covered by bark that is sewn in place and layered as shingles, and reinforced by light swag. Doors were constructed at both ends and were covered with an animal hide to preserve interior warmth. Especially long longhouses had doors in

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792-666: The home of the Onondaga Nation is the Onondaga Reservation . Onondaga people also live near Brantford, Ontario on Six Nations territory. This reserve used to be Haudenosaunee hunting grounds, but much of the Confederacy relocated there as a result of the American Revolution. Although the British promised the security of Haudenosaunee homelands, the 1783 treaty of Paris ceded the territory over to

828-533: The houses. Onondaga people The Onondaga people (Onontaerrhonon, Onondaga : Onoñda’gegá’’ , "People of the Hills") are one of the five original nations of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy in the Northeastern Woodlands . Their historical homelands are in and around present-day Onondaga County, New York , south of Lake Ontario. Being centrally located, they are considered

864-551: The largest number chieftainship titles as well as the largest number of clans among the Iroquois. Handsome Lake , the Seneca half-brother of Cornplanter and author of his eponymous Code, died at Onondaga. The Onondaga practice the sprinkling of ashes when juggling the treatment of the sick. They also do a public confession of sins upon a string of wampum (shell beads). The wampum is employed in all matters of public importance. Their funerals were known to be quiet and solemn, with

900-462: The late sixteenth century, after more than a generation on the Draper Site, the entire community moved five kilometres northwest to establish a new settlement, which archeologists have named the Mantle Site . The latter is located in the southeast corner of present-day Stouffville . It is the largest Wendat ancestral village excavated to date. The same community was formerly thought to have left

936-481: The longhouse village safe. Tribes or ethnic groups in northeast North America, south and east of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie , which had traditions of building longhouses include the Five Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy (Haudenosaunee): Seneca , Cayuga , Onondaga , Oneida and Mohawk . The Wyandot (also called Huron) and Erie people , both Iroquoian peoples , also built longhouses, as did

972-435: The sidewalls as well. Longhouses featured fireplaces in the center for warmth. Holes were made above the hearth to let out smoke, but such smoke holes also let in rain and snow. Ventilation openings, later singly dubbed as a smoke pipe , were positioned at intervals, possibly totalling five to six along the roofing of the longhouse. Missionaries who visited these longhouses often wrote about their dark interiors. On average

1008-525: The singing and dancing, the more thanks is given to the Creator. The Onondaga peoples rely on the lunar calendar for their ceremonies that occur, and there are faith-keepers responsible for initiating the ceremonies based on the different moons. Some factors that defined pre-colonial Onondaga life were: The Onondaga in New York have a traditional matriachal form of government, wherein chiefs are nominated by clan mothers, rather than elected. One's clan

1044-485: The termination of the Onondaga people, in an operation known as " The Sullivan Expedition ", breaking the neutrality agreement and devastating the Onondaga people. When the United States won independence, many Onondaga followed Joseph Brant to Upper Canada, where they were given land by the British Crown at Six Nations . In the aftermath of the "Sullivan Expedition", following the brutal winter of 1780, there

1080-592: The treaty. In 1816, 450 Onondaga were living in New York , 210 of whom lived on Buffalo Creek Reservation . The Onondaga Nation was crucial in forming the Iroquois League which led them to be very well revered by their peers. The "Tree of Peace" was planted on Onondaga Land. Onondaga has been regarded as the capital of Iroquois land. The Onondaga were known as the Central Fire-Keepers of

1116-406: The walls. Cuts and puncture marks indicated they served as work platforms; mats rolled out onto them tie with elders' memories of such benches used as beds. Storage was concentrated behind the benches, along the walls and in corners between benches. These locations within the houses have yielded the most artifacts. The rafters must have also provided storage, but the mudflow carried away this part of

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1152-610: The women covering their faces. There were also special events such as the Planting Feast which would happen in May or when the Onondaga believed the ground was ready. This was three days for penitential and religious services. One day for the children's dance, and one each for the Four Persons, the Holder for the Heavens, the Thunder, and for gambling. The Strawberry Feast comes when the berries are ripe. This day there are dancing for

1188-418: The years the houses were occupied. Walls met at the corners by simply butting together. They stayed structurally independent, allowing for easy dismantling. There were no windows. Light and ventilation came by shifting the position of roof planks, which were simply weighted with rocks, not fastened in position. Benches raised above the floor on stakes provided the main furniture of the houses. They were set near

1224-468: Was a massive swarm of periodical cicadas , which emerge from underground every seventeen years. The sudden arrival of such a large quantity of the insects provided a source of sustenance for the Onondaga people who were experiencing severe food insecurity following the Sullivan campaigns and the subsequent brutal winter. The seemingly miraculous arrival of the cicadas (specifically, Brood VII also known as

1260-427: Was just the opposite. The houses were built so that planks on the walls and roofs could be taken off and used at other places, as the people moved seasonally. Paired uprights supported rafters, which, in turn, held roof planks that overlapped like tiles. Wall planks were lashed between sets of poles. The position of these poles depended on the lengths of the boards they held, and they were evidently set and reset through

1296-593: Was unique to the Coast Salish of Puget Sound . The front is often very elaborately decorated with an integrated mural of numerous drawings of faces and heraldic crest icons of raven, bear, whale, etc. A totem pole often was erected outside the longhouse. The style varies greatly, and sometimes it became part of the entrance way. Tribes or ethnic groups along the North American Pacific coast with some sort of longhouse building traditions include

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