A Place of Peace

Despite the stereotypes of Conestoga Susquehannock people being fierce or “savage” warriors, the community at Conestoga town was incredibly peaceful and maintained their treaty commitments. As sharp conflict erupted across the emerging, the community at Conestoga was not permitted to have even hunting weapons, for fear of being considered a threat and killed by over-anxious colonists who often did not distinguish between ally and enemy Natives.

The inability to own weapons restricted the ability of the community to hunt and provide for their families. This created an environment in which the community at Conestoga was forced to be dependent on the colony of Pennsylvania, whom they trusted with their lives. The Christianization of Conestoga people, who adapted western religious beliefs for survival and integration, disrupted traditional cultural practices and destabilized the political structure. The Conestoga community, being unable to provide for itself both fiscally and culturally, gradually shrunk as members began to migrate towards more insulated areas. Some continued to migrate north to the Haudenosaunee tribes, and others migrated west in a conglomerate that became known as the Mingo people, a variation of “Minqua” which is what our Lenape neighbors called us. As late as 1755, court records show our people seeking permission to enter other Native nations as far south as North Carolina. The Mingo people still exist today as the Seneca Cayuga Nation in Oklahoma, which is one of several modern tribes with historical kinship to the Conestoga Susquehannock.

The letter to the right was written just two weeks before the Conestoga massacre, illustrating the dire need in the community at that time and the violations of treaty commitments as colonists continued to encroach on our land. Despite these treaty violations and wrongdoings, they prepared a string of wampum to honor the arrival of John Penn. Wampum was incredibly expensive and labor intensive, and was offered to show the highest appreciation for the treaty commitments our ancestors had made. We invite everyone to read this final communication and then examine the stereotypical images and ideas pertaining to Conestoga Susquehannock people.