Haudenosaunee men holding seven arrows at the opening of the Landscape of Nations Memorial, representing the seven generations since the War of 1812. – Photo courtesy of Niagara Parks Commission
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Over the years, the culture, history and presence of First Nations in the Niagara region of Ontario have been almost entirely eradicated. Little remains.
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Pity, for archaeological studies indicate the area was inhabited by native people for approximately 8,000 years. The earliest were the Neutral Indians, a peaceful woodland people who formed a buffer, or neutral zone, between the warring Hurons and Iroquois. By 1650, the Neutrals had been largely annihilated by the much more war-like Iroquois or Six Nations (Seneca, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga, Mohawk, Tuscarora). The Iroquois were fierce fighters who terrorized neighbouring tribes and were much feared by white settlers. In an effort to defend their territory, the Iroquois played an important role in the War of 1812.
Sadly, their efforts were to no avail. Recently, however, there have been a few small steps to rectify this situation.
Landscape of Nations opening ceremonies on October 2nd, 2016 – Photo courtesy of Niagara Parks Commission
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Starting about five years ago, Indigenous people started to change the name Iroquois, which is of French origin, to Haudenosaunee (people of the Longhouse), which is in their own language. A sign of pride and confidence.
An important step came in October, 2016, when the Landscape of Nations Memorial was opened at Queenston Heights Park. The attractive memorial, which is steeped in Native symbolism and meaning shines light on the significant but largely unknown contribution of the Haudenosaunee and other Natives in supporting the British and Canadian soldiers in the Battle of Queenston Heights and throughout the War of 1812.
Two Wampum Trail with Turtle in Queenston Heights Park.
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Travis Hill, a Tuscarora, guided me through the Memorial. At the entry a turtle is inscribed in the walkway. “In our culture, the earth was created on the back of a giant turtle,” said Hill. Next we passed between tall statues of John Norton and John Brant, Haudenosaunee leaders during the war. “They contributed both experience and youthful energy,” said Hill. “Norton was in his 60s and Brant only 18 years old when the war began.”
John Norton (L) and John Brant (R)
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We continued along the trail, which has two rows of darker paving stones symbolizing the Two Row Wampum Belt, the treaty between the Haudenosaunee and the Europeans to co-exist separately but as equals. We passed under a symbolic longhouse and came to the Memory Circle, the heart of the Memorial, where eight limestone blocks radiate from the centre like a sunburst. “There is so much here,” said Hill, “everything has deep meaning.”
The Two Row Wampum Trail continued, passing time markers, a berm representing ancestral lands and plants that were present in 1800. The trail ended at the Tree of Peace, an eastern white pine, emblematic of the Haudenosaunee Great Law of Peace.
Limestone blocks radiating from the centre.
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A brief drive took me to the Peace Monument erected in 2017 at Decew House Heritage Park in Thorold. The Monument represents the role First Nations peoples played in aiding Laura Secord, the Canadian heroine who brought news of an imminent American attack to the British during the War of 1812. The First Nations warriors escorted Secord to the British garrison stationed at Decew House, and later helped in defeating the Americans at the Battle of Beaverdams. The curved walls of two stone sculptures are symbols of longhouses, opening to the east and west, with wampum belts engraved on the sides. In the middle there is a spot for a sacred fire. The monument is a symbol of the restoration of peace between the First Nations allies and the British after the war. The pathway leading into the monument continues out to a circular garden where a singular white pine tree, a symbol of peace, is planted. The white pine also honours First Nations’ women.
John Brant framed by Longhouse
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The Peace Monument was designed by renowned Canadian architect Douglas Cardinal, who is of Blackfoot heritage. “First Nations teachings of forgiveness, striving for peace and valuing all of nature are something people of all cultures can benefit from,” he said. “Unless we teach people to love and care for all life on this planet, we won’t have a future.”
John Brant
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I reflected on how Native people, instead of being rewarded for their contributions in the War of 1812, suffered neglect and even worse. The Indian Act of 1876 helped strip them of their lands, culture, including language, and their dignity. But the glorious memorials in Queenston Heights and Thorold are signs that reconciliation has taken root in Niagara.
Now is the time to commit to a major First Nations cultural centre on the Niagara Parkway; we have much to learn from Indigenous culture and philosophy.
https://roadstories.ca/first-peoples/
Hello, My name is Kate Gibson and I live in Leamington, Ontario. I am very interested in contacting Hans Tammemagi in the hope that he can help me to find out how I can contact some First Nations people in the Niagara area. I have a cousin and her husband, who live in Australia, who are very interested in learning about the culture and spiritually of First Nations people in Canada. They will be visiting us in the late summer / early fall of 2019 and have asked me to see if I can arrange a meeting with some First Nations people during our visit to Niagara Falls. My cousin’s husband, Don Gibson, is involved in spiritual classes in Australia and has a keen interested in a spiritual session with a First Nations group here in Canada during their visit. If you can direct me on how to contact Hans Tammemagi…..or anyone else who can steer me in the right direction, I would be most grateful. Thank you so much for reading my message. I hope to hear back from you soon. Regards, Kate Gibson.
Kate,
Great to hear from you. You can contact Hans through his website … http://www.hanstammemagi.com/ … good luck with your project. He lives on the west coast.
Glenn
Love this article. I have been to this Landscape of Nations monument a couple of times. Next weekend I will be bringing a group of spiritual women to do a Water Walk along the Niagara River. We will be stopping at this Landscape Monument so that I can introduce the women to this beautiful tribute and its amazing energy. Peace to all people!
Hiya. I grew up in West St. Catharines along Pelham Rd. I am Assimilated. We knew as children that Mom was and we were different from other kids. That was the mid 70s. We met a few of my grandmother’s 17 siblings. Grandma was born in 1913 and the first. Some born under Great Grandmother’s maiden name. The rest under her married name. I only met those with the married name. But that was all that tied us to our roots. Or so I thought. As children we knew the garden and the significance of the soil, water and our Geography. My artwork were what I still call my Vision Art.
Creator had blessed me with the gift of Art and Storytelling through being in stage, singing and many types of visual art. My roots showed.
Over the last decade I have become very proud of my roots but I have had to heal. And forgive. But I had to forgive my family. My Indigenous roots. That is another story.
But I forgave my mother. But I have not been back to St. Catharines since 2005.
I have learned to Acknowledge my Roots. As I learn practice and meaning yet at 53 unable to speak my ancestors language I hold firm my love for Turtle Island.
I live on the Ancestral lands of the Huron Wendat summer lands on the North Shore of Lake Ontario. I live Adjacent to the last reserve on Toronto lands. Vacated and replicated in 1793. That too is another story.
I am a descendant of the Claus Wampum and the activities of the War of 1812- 1814
That is a clue for others’ who might identify with this name. Or Ida’s married name Hipwell.
I am the Invisible Canadian
Nia:Wen
Thank you John for sharing this part of your life with us. Much appreciated.
I just heard Michael Martin (Haudenosaunee) speak at the Chautauqua Institution: “The Doctrine of Discovery: An Unjust Imperative, Born Out of Religious Justification — A Presentation of the Tragic and Lasting Consequences of Supremacy.” It spurred me to read more and led me to your site. Thank you.
Catherine, Sounds like an amazing presentation. Thanks for telling me about it.
The Assembly of First Nations has a long piece full of background and links called Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery. Very informative.
The Anglicans too have pitched in with a very moving video called Doctrine of Discovery; Stolen lands, Strong Hearts, which I recommend. After I first watched it, I was changed. – Glenn
Wonderful exchanges!
Glen, you seem to know a lot 😉 That’s very nice.
Do you know anything about the Haudenosaunee or generally the Indigenous community on the US side? I am looking to move to the US side of Niagara Falls area very soon and definitely want to make contact with the people. I have a spiritual connection to the people. – June