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Saturday, December 1, 2012

Ode to the Susquehannock

        
As many who visit frequently know, I always pay tribute to the Susquehannocks in December. This year will be no different.

This tribe of Iroquoian-speaking Native Americans ruled the Susquehanna River from the Chesapeake Bay to the Sayre/Waverly area, and perhaps well beyond. First described in 1608 by Captain John Smith, they were feared warriors, and although they were ultimately defeated by the Senecas in ~1675, a small band of their descendants - known as the Conestogas - were allowed to return and remain in the Lancaster, PA area in the early 1700's.

In December 1763, they were slaughtered by a local group of frontier vigilantes known as the Paxton Boys. Members of that gang were eventually killed in the Battle of Wyoming over a decade later in July 1778.

Time is fleeting, folks. I hope I can find the time during these next few weeks to do their existence justice.

Photo by DK Natt

  

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