Skenandoa facts for kids

John Skenandoa (born around 1706 – died March 11, 1816) was an important leader of the Oneida people. He was also known as Shenandoah. He was born into the Susquehannock people, who spoke an Iroquoian language. Later, he was adopted into the Oneida, who were part of the powerful Iroquois Confederacy.

When Skenandoa became a Christian, he was baptized "John". He used his Oneida name, Skenandoa, as his last name. His tombstone shows his name spelled as Schenando.

During the time when America was still a group of colonies, Skenandoa helped the English fight against the French in the Seven Years' War. Later, during the American Revolutionary War, he supported the American colonists. He led about 250 Oneida and Tuscarora warriors to help them. Skenandoa was a good friend of Samuel Kirkland, a minister who helped start Hamilton College. Skenandoa asked to be buried next to Kirkland, and his wish was granted.

What's in a Name?

Skenandoa's name was written in many different ways. "Shenandoah" is the most famous version. You might have heard it in the folk song "O Shenandoah". The song talks about a chief and his daughter.

Other ways his name was spelled include Skenandoah, Scanandoa, Schenandoah, and Shanandoah. People also wrote it as Skenando, Scanondo, and Skenandore.

The exact meaning of Skenandoa's name is not fully known. Some think it comes from an Oneida word meaning "deer." But Skenandoa himself said he was "an aged hemlock." The Oneida word for "hemlock" is kanʌʔtú:saʔ. This idea has been around for a long time.

Life of a Leader

Skenandoa was born around 1710. He was part of the Susquehannock people, who lived in what is now eastern Pennsylvania. He later became part of the Oneida people. The Oneida were one of the five nations in the Iroquois Confederacy.

As an adult, Skenandoa was very tall, about 6 feet 5 inches. He was known for his strong and impressive presence. The Oneida chose him as a "Pine Tree Chief." This special title was given to leaders who showed great skill and helped their tribe.

Being a Pine Tree Chief meant he could join the Grand Council. This council had 50 chiefs from all the nations of the Confederacy. This leadership role was not passed down in families. Skenandoa could not choose who would be chief after him.

Helping in Wars

During the Seven Years' War, also called the French and Indian War in the United States, Chief Skenandoa supported the British. He led the Oneida in helping them in central New York. It is said that he saved German settlers in German Flatts from an attack.

Over the next few years, he made more friends and alliances with German and British settlers in New York.

Friendship and Faith

Samuel Kirkland was a Christian missionary who came to the Iroquois lands in 1764. He met Chief Skenandoa and wrote about him. Kirkland returned in 1766 and worked with the Oneida for the rest of his life. Kirkland convinced Skenandoa to become Christian. After his baptism, Skenandoa took the name "John." Many Oneida people became Christians before the American Revolutionary War.

Because of his friendship with Kirkland, Chief Skenandoa chose to support the American colonists during the Revolutionary War. He led many Oneida warriors to fight against the British and their Iroquois allies. Skenandoa commanded 250 warriors from the Oneida and Tuscarora tribes.

In the 1800s, New York Governor Daniel D. Tompkins gave Skenandoa a silver pipe. This was to honor his help during the war. Today, this pipe is on display at Shako:wi, the Oneida Nation museum near Syracuse.

During the war, Mohawk war leader Joseph Brant was an ally of the British. He had Skenandoa put in jail at Fort Niagara for a time in 1779. This happened when Skenandoa was trying to make peace with other Iroquois groups.

Later Life and Legacy

After the war, Kirkland continued to work with the Oneida. Around 1791, he started planning a school for boys. It would be open to both Oneida and white young men. In 1793, he received permission from the state to open the Hamilton Oneida Seminary. By 1812, this school grew into Hamilton College.

Skenandoa lived to be very old, over a hundred years. Near the end of his life, he became blind. He famously said:

I am an aged hemlock. I am dead at the top. The winds of an hundred winters have whistled through my branches. Why my Jesus keeps me here so long, I cannot conceive. Pray ye to him, that I may have patience to endure till my time may come.

Skenandoa died in 1816. He had asked to be buried next to his friend Kirkland, who had died in 1808. The Kirkland family agreed, and Skenandoa was buried on their land in Clinton, New York. Today, this land is called Harding Farm.

Many people respected Chief Skenandoa. His funeral in 1816 included students and officers from Hamilton College. Kirkland's widow and her family were there, along with many town residents. Skenandoa's son and other family members also attended. In 1851, both Skenandoa and Kirkland were moved and reburied in the cemetery of Hamilton College.

Honors and Remembering Skenandoa

Oneida stories say that Chief Skenandoa sent important food, like corn, to General George Washington and his soldiers. This happened during their very hard winter at Valley Forge in 1777–1778. It is said that Washington named the Shenandoah River and its valley in Skenandoa's honor. Many other places in the United States were later named Shenandoah. His name is also in the title and words of the folk song "Oh Shenandoah".

A monument to Skenandoa was built at the Hamilton College cemetery. It was put there by the Northern Missionary Society. The monument honors his leadership, his friendship with Kirkland, and his important help to the American colonists during the war.

In 2002, Skenandoa was added to the Hall of Fame of the Oneida County Historical Society.

The famous Oneida singer and composer Joanne Shenandoah (1957–2021) was a descendant of Chief Shenandoah.

See also

In Spanish: Skenandoa para niños