The Tuscarora Tribe
History does not look too much into the history of the Tuscarora people, and often it is a tribe that is over looked, but it is a group that has a deep and intense history when it came to American colonization. To start off, there were two branches in the Tuscarora tribe, led by Chief Hancock and Chief Tom Blunt (later changed to Blount), but when Europeans began to violently attack the tribe, both leaders decided to end European influence on the community. Chief Hancock took things a step farther, and he decided to fight back against the European colonies. The North Carolinians were ill-prepared for battle after Cary's Rebellion ( a fight that involved the replacement of Deputy Governor Thomas Cary), and was quickly defeated at the time. For the Tuscarora people, it seemed that the breaking point was the surveyor John Lawson recommended the Tuscarora should be forced out of their land without payment. When word spread about this, the tribe quickly abducted him, later killing him after thorough investigation. As Chief Hancock continued his tirade of revenge, the Tuscarora were forced to surrender and were had many 35,000 of land taken away from them. In the early 1700's, many Tuscaroras were killed or enslaved by the British during this even later named the Tuscarora War.
Most of the survivors moved to New York to live with their northern relatives, the powerful Iroquois Confederacy. Interesting enough, the Tuscarora were one of the many tribes that had a matriarchal government, something that was unheard of for Europeans.Despite the tribe's unfortunate history, the Tuscarora is a prime example of the risks that can come when taking a chance against the idea you disagree with.
*To read "Christoph von Graffenried's account of the Tuscarora War" go to the link below:
http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/nchist-colonial/1962
*To read “A Letter from Major Christopher Gale, November 2, 1711″ go to the link below:http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/6472
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