In 1915, Frank Severance, a white man who had been adopted by the Seneca, and a historian, spoke at the annual Tuscarora picnic in New York. His speech has been preserved for posterity, and it is quite interesting. At this time in history, the 150 year lease, signed in 1766 on the Bertie County lands in North Carolina was expiring. The Tuscarora who by this time were well settled into New York and had lived there for 5 or 6 generations since the lease was signed believed they held the reversionary rights to the land in Bertie County, NC. This lawsuit was still being fought in the 1970s, more than 200 years after the lease was signed.
If you’d like to see what Frank had to say about the Tuscarora, his speech is online at this link. It makes for a very interesting read. He gives a bit of the history and tells of their migration – a migration which lasted for nearly 100 years, from 1713 through 1803 or so and involved North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, Canada and Wisconsin.
Hat tip to Elaine for finding this site!!!
Native Heritage Project 