The intense culture of Iroquois Indians included a set of six different languages,
Mohawk, Seneca, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga and Tuscarora (Lewis and Redish). At the Great
Council and different religious events, mostly Mohawk was spoken. Children had different
games and toys, including cornhusk dolls and a game where a dart is thrown through a
moving hoop. For art and medicine, masks were created to frighten away evil spirits and
illness. This sacred form of recreation lead to the the False Face Society, a clan of
medicine men said to have special powers wearing their self-created wooden masks
(Iroquois).
It is obvious that the Iroquois Indians participated in a variety of activities,
many of
which for recreation. Our attempt to revive Onondaga Lake begins with an idea of
displaying all of these Iroquois traditions in order to educate children, and open minds
of adults and students. Hopefully, we bring more activity and publicity to Onondaga
Lake. It would be wonderful to cause the history of Onondaga Lake to come full circle
and bring back the excitement-filled atmosphere of the past. Our primary goal is to
provide at least one annual day of activity for visitors of Onondaga Lake.
The Iroquois lived in Longhouses which were about 25 feet by 200 feet
The longhouses could house a family of up to 60 people.
Family was matrilineal, meaning that women owned property and determined kinship
When married the husband moved into the wife?s longhouse and the children were part of
the mother?s clan
There were three clans, turtle, bear, and wolf, each headed by a clan mother.
Everyone within the longhouse cared for each other as though the children were their own
and that the person living with them were like their brother or sister.
The Iroquois League was created to maintain peace
This was accomplished through The Great Law of Peace which stated that Iroquois should
not kill one another
The leaders in the Iroquois council were nominated by tribal clan mothers, yet they were
all male.
Without any modern technology, the Native Americans of this area has to survive based
solely on instinct, especially when it comes to food. The Native Americans developed a
hunter-gatherer style of obtaining food. Although this means of gathering food may not be
consistent in the sense that there is always food available in one place, they found many
natural crops and new methods of cooking so there was always food available. The crops
that were the basis for their diet were corn, beans and squash. Corn, beans and squash
are commonly referred to by the Onondagas and the Oneidas specifically as the 3 sisters.
These foods were the three foods first ?given to us from our mother earth.? The Onondagas
live near the finger lakes area of present day New York. That allowed the Onondagas for
the spring and summer months to fish in the streams. The fall and winter allowed for the
hunting of deer, turkey, rabbit and game found throughout the area. The Cayuga tribe,
Mohawk tribe, and the Tuscarora tribe were primarily agricultural people. The women
planted crops of corn, beans, and squash and harvested wild berries and herbs. The men
hunted deer and elk and fished in the rivers and on the shores of Lake Ontario. The
tribes? recipes included cornbread, soups, and stews, which they cooked on stone hearths.
The Iroquois were a hunting, fishing and agricultural people. The young men hunted and
the women and elderly men did the gardening. Children served as lookouts to keep birds
and other pests from the fields. By this cooperative effort, everyone contributed to the
production of food in the Iroquois village. Livestock included pigs and other
domesticated animals.
For the festival, each tribe would create a traditional dish, one that is representative
of their history and one that they would like to be associated with from the general
populace. There is also a sense of decorum that is expected to be done when eating and
preparing food. For example, hunters and gatherers are taught to take only what is
needed. It is a lesson to learn not to deplete all of your resources and leave none for
the people who are following you tomorrow, or to save for your grandchildren of the
people not yet born. These are the messages that we would like to convey to the audience
through the food. The food isn?t merely corn, squash etc. There is a meaning behind each
piece of food and the Native Americans do not take anything for granted, a value which
should be conveyed to the people attending the festival.
If the festival is successful, it could become an annual event which would continuously
reunite the recreation of the area with the history of the people. The point of the
entire festival is to bring people back to Onondaga Lake. Since swimming and fishing was
banned from the Lake, they lost a lot of business. The Lake also has been separated from
its roots. The foundation for the Iroquois Confederacy was formed on the shores of the
Lake. The festival will revive the Lake, bringing back people, culture and recreation in
one epiphenomenon that will reunite the people and the area in which they live.
1-Show images of Native American recreational activities.
2-Address a detailed timeline of Native American history around Onondaga Lake and the
decline of recreation around the lake.
3-Play the Sacred Bowl Game.
According to legend, directly on the shore of Onondaga Lake, the warlike Onondaga
chief
Tadodaho was persuaded by Hiawatha and Deganawidah (the Peacemaker) to accept the Great
Law of Peace, thus creating the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, also known as the Iroquois
Confederacy (Onondaga Lake).
4- Show pictures and representations of this event.
The last of the grand resorts around Onondaga Lake, Maurer's Long Beach, closed down in
1938 (Williamson 10). By the mid twentieth century, Onondaga Lake had transformed from a
resort area filled with activity, water sports, boating, concerts, games and amusement
parks, to one of the most polluted lakes in America (Williamson).
5- Show pictures of Onondaga Lake and these activities.
The beginning of the resurgence is now. As a Superfund site, the government has
invested millions of dollars to clean up Onondaga Lake. Our project attempts to bring
the lake back to its roots, to honor history and bring back recreation around Onondaga
Lake.
Iroquois Indians played the Sacred Bowl Game and invented the sport of lacrosse
(Iroquois, Lewis and Redish). The strong and powerful nation of the Iroquois Confederacy
hunted, gathered crops, survived and thrived around the Onondaga Lake. Unappreciated
culture and traditions began around Onondaga Lake.
The Iroquois practiced year-round festivals (Iroquois).
6-Show list of festivals and more pictures.
Slide 1 -The Iroquois lived in Longhouses which were about 25 feet by 200 feet
The longhouses could house a family of up to 60 people.
Slide 2 -Family was matrilineal, meaning that women owned property and determined kinship
When married the husband moved into the wife?s longhouse and the children were part of
the mother?s clan
There were three clans, turtle, bear, and wolf, each headed by a clan mother.
Everyone within the longhouse cared for each other as though the children were their own
and that the person living with them were like their brother or sister.
Slide 3 -The Iroquois League was created to maintain peace
This was accomplished through The Great Law of Peace which stated that Iroquois should
not kill one another
The leaders in the Iroquois council were nominated by tribal clan mothers, yet they were
all male.
