We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Native American

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

Who are the Tuscarora Indians?

By Grayson Millar
Updated: May 17, 2024
Views: 11,377
Share

The Tuscarora Indians are a tribe of Native Americans traditionally located in New York, North Carolina and Ontario, Canada. The Tuscarora joined the Iroquois League of Nations, "The League of Peace and Power," in 1722 as the sixth nation in the Iroquois League, which was located in the area that is now New York. Historically, the Tuscarora Indians were made up of three tribes: the Kautanohakau, "People of the Submerged Pine-tree"; the Kauwetseka, which is of indeterminate meaning; and the Tuscarora, "hemp gatherers." Hemp was used for many purposes by the Tuscarora Indians who lived in the region that would become North Carolina and, consequently, they took the name of "hemp gatherers." The official Tuscaroran language was Skarure, one of the languages of the northern group of the Iroquoian languages.

Very little is known about the history of the Tuscarora prior to the arrival of European settlers in North America. It is believed that the Tuscarora originally gathered as a people in the Great Lakes region around the same time that the Iroquois coalesced into the Five Nations. Well before European settlers arrived, the Tuscarora had relocated to the eastern region of present-day North Carolina, in which they were the most populous group of Native Americans, numbering somewhere between 1,200 and 5,000. European settlers first encountered the Tuscarora in what are now North Carolina and Virginia around 1653.

The Tuscarora War between the Tuscarora Indians and British, Dutch, and German settlers was fought mostly between 1711 and 1713. During this time, the Tuscarora were divided into southern and northern regions, which ultimately led to a permanent division of the tribe. With Chief Tom Blunt as their leader, the group in the northern region formed a friendship with the Blount family of the Bertie region of North Carolina — from whom he took his namd — and would go on to side with the settlers against the southern Tuscarora, led by Chief Hancock.

European settlers often raided Chief Hancock's villages and took captives whom they sold as slaves. The southern Tuscarora had little choice but to fight back, which began the Tuscarora war. With the assistance of Chief Blunt's northern Tuscarora, who were promised leadership of the entire Tuscarora nation in exchange for his allegiance, the southern Tuscarora were defeated. The majority of southern Tuscarora began migrating north where, over the next 80 years, nearly all of them would settle in New York and join the Iroquois Nation, settling on what became the Tuscarora Reservation. The northern Tuscarora Indians also would side with American colonists in the American Revolutionary war.

The southern Tuscarora Indians remained in North Carolina on the Bertie Reservation, where they met with poor treatment. The majority, dissatisfied with Chief Blunt's leadership, migrated without reforming as a people. The Tuscarora eventually lost the Bertie County Reservation, but a small population still remains in North Carolina.

Share
America Explained is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.
Discussion Comments
Share
https://www.americaexplained.org/who-are-the-tuscarora-indians.htm
Copy this link
America Explained, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

America Explained, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.