AUGUST 28, 1775

AMERICANS OBTAIN ONEIDA AND TUSCARORA NEUTRALITY IN REVOLUTIONARY WAR

Following the Colonists’ capture of Fort Ticonderoga, Benedict Arnold convinced General Washington to invade Quebec Province. Guy Johnson, a New York Loyalist friendly with the Iroquois, led about 200 Loyalist & Mohawk supporters first to Fort Ontario, where, in June, he obtained promises of support from mostly Iroquois & Huron tribal leaders. In Montreal, he met with over 1,500 Indigenous peoples (mostly Mohawks), negotiating similar agreements, and delivering war belts “to be held ready for service.” However, other Iroquois tribes sought to stay neutral. To ensure this, the Continental Congress sent General Schuyler, who had influence with the Oneidas. He called for a conference in Albany in mid-August. Attended primarily by Oneidas, Tuscaroras, and a few Mohawk, Schuyler and other commissioners explained the issues dividing the colonies from Britain. The assembled chiefs agreed to remain neutral, with one Mohawk chief saying, “It is a family affair.”

Sources:
  Joseph T. Glatthaar; James Kirby Martin, (2006). Forgotten Allies: The Oneida Indians and the American Revolution. New York: Hill and Wang. ISBN 978-0-8090-4601-0. OCLC 63178983.  Retrieved 2/27/2022, Forgotten allies : the Oneida Indians and the American revolution : Glatthaar, Joseph T., 1956- : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive
Justin H. Smith, (1907). Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony, vol 1. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.  Retrieved 2/27/2022, 
Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony Canada, and the American Revolution : Justin Harvey Smith : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive
Map:  Les Frères Maristes, 1923.  Province of Quebec 1774. Public Domain.  Source: Atlas-Géographie. Étude physique, politique, économique de la Province de Québec, Montreal, Granger