Iroquois Land Grant

After helping the British during the American Revolution, the Iroquois are given two land grants. Thayendanegea (Joseph Brant) settles his followers at the Six Nations Reserve, near Brantford.

When the peace negotiation between Great Britain and the United States occurred, Britain had disregarded its Indian allies. It transferred all British-claimed land from the west up to the Mississippi River to the Americans, even though Indians were living throughout all of the territories. In 1793, Governor general Lord Dorchester and Sir John Johnson had informed Joseph Brant about their intentions to achieve peace between the western Indians and the United States. However, both men had intended on deliberately deceiving Brant, and donated false information

concerning the boundaries established by Great Britain and the United States.

When Joseph Brant was informed of the treaty's terms, he angrily exclaimed that England had “sold the Indians to the Congress.” The Six Nations became angry about the unfair treatment, and the British administrators in Quebec attempted to appease them.

Colonial officials collaborated with the home government to secure a land grant in the province for the Iroquois.

Arrangements were made by Haldimand for an area of land on the Bay of Quinte to be given to Mohawks, who lost their land as an outcome of the war and to other Six Nations indians and allies who desired to immigrate.

The Iroquois land that was far to the west were not threatened by the Americans, and the Seneca refused the location, preferring to stay. They believed that the settlement on the Bay of Quinte would disperse, and spread the Native Americans over a great distance, endangering them all. Instead, they offered the Genesee Valley to the refugees. The Mohawks rejected the offer, but therefore requested of Haldimand to grant land closer to the Six Nations homeland.

During this autumn, the Indians received a large piece of land along the Grand River and, with the exception of certain Mohawks who preferred to settle at the Bay of Quinte, they established themselves on that land. The land was six miles on either side of the Grand River, leading to a total of 675,000 acres purchased from the Mississauga Nation.

Robert S. Allen, “ Joseph Thayendanegea Brant,” in Canadian Encyclopedia (Online),

http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/joseph-brant/

Barbara Graymont, “THAYENDANEGEA,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 5, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/thayendanegea_5E.html.