Extensive categorization and cross-reference of all North American native american indian tribes of the US and Canada First Nations, by nations, bands, rancheria, pueblo, federally recognized, state recognized, unrecognized, petitions for recognition, by state or providence, and by language group and region of original occupation. You can also find a listing of official tribal web sites on the Internet.
NEW YORK INDIAN TRIBES
Federal list last updated 3/07
FEDERALLY RECOGNIZED TRIBES
Cayuga Nation of New York
Oneida Nation of New York
Onondaga Nation of New York
Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe (formerly the St. Regis Band of Mohawk Indians of New York)
Seneca Nation of New York
Tonawanda Band of Seneca Indians of New York
Tuscarora Nation of New York
STATE RECOGNIZED TRIBES (Not recognized by the Federal Governemnt)
Shinnecock Indian Tribe of New York (formerly Shinnecock Tribe aka Shinnecock Nation of Indians). Letter of Intent to Petition 02/08/1978.
Unkechague Poosepatuck Tribe
UNRECOGNIZED / PETITIONING TRIBES
The Chickamauga Notowega Creeks. Letter of Intent to Petition 3/19/2001.
Deer Council of Free Cherokees
Hudson River Band (formerly Konkapot Band, Hudson Valley Band). Letter of Intent to Petition 4/19/2002.
Mohawk Nation Akwesasne Mohawk Territory
Mohawk Reservation
Montauk Indian Nation (aka Montaukett Indian Nation of New York).[6] Letter of Intent to Petition 07/31/1995.
Montaukett Tribe of Long Island. Letter of Intent to Petition 3/16/1998.
Ohatchee Cherokee Tribe of New York and Alabama. Letter of Intent to Petition 12/16/2002.
Western Mohegan Tribe & Nation of New York. Letter of Intent to Petition 1/27/1997.
FIRST CONTACT TO PRESENT
When the first European explorer sailed into New York harbor in 1524, the native civilization found on the banks of the Hudson was a complex and ancient one. At the time of encounter with the Europeans, the natives densely populated the entire area in and around what is now New York City. On the banks of the Hudson, as far north as Albany, Algonquin tribes lived in fortified villages, protected by sturdy walls of upright logs. According to early colonists and explorers’ journals, there were also many unfortified villages on both banks of the Hudson.
From the mid to late 1700s, the Indian population had gradually dwindled as the lower River Indians suffered from smallpox, malaria, influenza and other diseases which were previously unknown to them. Entire villages were wiped out because the natives lacked immunity to the white man's diseases.
The Westchester Indians to the east of the river had sold most of their lands to the English by the early 1700s. Some remained in Yorktown around Indian Hill. Some chose to stay in the Hudson Valley, settling in remote areas either marrying other remaining Indians or intermarrying with their black or white neighbors.
Most, however, moved west into Ohio, where they endured another century of struggle as white settlers spread beyond the Ohio River. Some would return to their lands to trade furs they had trapped, to sell baskets and crafts door-to-door, to visit the graves of their ancestors and to die in their homeland.
PRE-CONTACT NEW YORK TRIBES
PRE-HISTORIC CULTURES IN NEW YORK
8000 B.C. -
1000 - 1600 A.D. -
The ancestors of these natives entered the Hudson Valley some twelve thousand years ago, after the last continental glacier receded from North America.
A significant change took place in the northeast from 1000 to 1600 AD as these early people gradually discovered they could grow their own vegetables. Horticulture, or garden farming, added to the traditional lifestyle of hunting, fishing and gathering. Corn, beans, squash and pumpkins, sunflowers and tobacco came from the south and southwest, perhaps initially from Mexico, where agriculture had been practiced for several thousand years.
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