John Skenandoa (; c. 1706 – March 11, 1816), also called Shenandoah () among other forms, was an elected chief (a so-called "pine tree chief") of the Oneida. He was born into the

Iroquoian The Iroquoian languages are a language family of indigenous peoples of North America. They are known for their general lack of labial consonants. The Iroquoian languages are polysynthetic and head-marking. As of 2020, all surviving Iroquoian ...

-speaking Susquehannocks, but was adopted into the Oneida of the Iroquois Confederacy. When he later accepted Christianity, he was baptized as "John", taking his Oneida name Skenandoa as his surname. Based on a possible reconstruction of his name in its original Oneida, he is sometimes called "Oskanondonha" in modern scholarship. His tombstone bears the spelling Schenando (). During the colonial years, Skenandoa supported the English against the French in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (175 ...

. Later, during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, he supported the colonials and led a force of 250 Oneida and Tuscarora warriors in western New York in their support. A longtime friend of the minister Samuel Kirkland, a founder of

Hamilton College Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. It was founded as Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and was chartered as Hamilton College in 1812 in honor of inaugural trustee Alexander Hamilton, following ...

, his request to be buried next to Kirkland was granted. In the funeral procession at the death of Skenandoa together were Oneida, students and officers from Hamilton College, Kirkland's widow and her family, and many citizens of Clinton, New York.

Name

Skenandoa's name is variously recorded; "Shenandoah" has become the most famous form, used in many versions of the folk song " O Shenandoah", where the words "O Shenandoah, I love your daughter" and "The chief disdained the trader's dollars: / 'My daughter never you shall follow'" are found. Other forms include Skenandoah or Scanandoa; Schenandoah, Schenandoa, Shenondoa, Shanandoah, or Shanendoah; Skenando or Scanondo; Schenando; Skenandore; and Skennondon, Scanandon, Skonondon, or Skeanendon. The origin of Skenandoa's name is uncertain. The spelling Oskanondonha (which was not recorded in his lifetime) assumes derivation from Oneida ''oskanu:tú:'' , "deer". However, Skenandoa referred to himself as "an aged hemlock", and the Oneida word for " hemlock" is ''kanʌʔtú:saʔ'' ; this derivation has had a longer tradition of acceptance.

Life

Skenandoa was born in 1710 into the

-speaking Susquehannock people (also called Conestoga), located in present-day eastern Pennsylvania. He was adopted into the

Oneida people The Oneida people ( autonym: Onʌyoteˀa·ká·, Onyota'a:ka, ''the People of the Upright Stone, or standing stone'', ''Thwahrù·nęʼ'' in Tuscarora) are a Native American tribe and First Nations band. They are one of the five founding ...

, one of the Five Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy. As an adult man, he was notable for his height, estimated to be 6'5," and was said to have a commanding presence. The Oneida elected him as a "Pine Tree Chief", in recognition of his leadership and contribution to the tribe. This position allowed him a place in the Grand Council of 50 chiefs of the Confederacy, representing all the clans of all the nations. It was not hereditary, nor could Skenandoa name a successor."Pine Tree Chiefs"
Haudenosaunee Confederacy, accessed 20 May 2014 The name referred to a man being recognized as a chief and rising up inside the tribe. During the

(also called the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

in the United States), Chief Skenandoa favored the British against the French and led the Oneida in their support in central New York. He was said to have saved German colonists in German Flatts, in the Mohawk Valley, from a massacre. During the next decades, he formed more alliances with the ethnic German and British colonists in central and western New York. Samuel Kirkland, a Protestant

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

who went to the Iroquois country of western New York in 1764, encountered Chief Skenandoa there and mentioned him in letters. Kirkland returned to the area in 1766 and worked with the Oneida for the remainder of his life. After Kirkland persuaded the chief to become baptized, Skenandoa took the name "John". Many of the Oneida converted to Christianity in the decade before the

. In part due to the friendship with Kirkland, Chief Skenandoa favored the patriot colonials and led the Oneida to be their allies during the Revolutionary War. He led many Oneida to fight against the British and their Iroquois allies, who came from four nations of the Confederacy. Chief Skenandoa commanded 250 warriors from the Oneida and Tuscarora tribes. In the 1800s New York Governor

Daniel D. Tompkins Daniel D. Tompkins (June 21, 1774 – June 11, 1825) was an American politician. He was the fifth governor of New York from 1807 to 1817, and the sixth vice president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. Born in Scarsdale, New York, Tompkins ...

gave him a silver pipe in recognition of his contributions. Today it is displayed at ''Shako:wi'', the

Oneida Nation The Oneida Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people in Wisconsin. The tribe's reservation spans parts of two counties west of the Green Bay metropolitan area. The reservation was established by treaty in 1838, and was allotted to ...

museum at their reservation near Syracuse.Michael Nassar, "Five Native American Treasures Within Driving Distance"
''New York Daily News'', 15 July 2008

Mohawk Mohawk may refer to: Related to Native Americans * Mohawk people, an indigenous people of North America (Canada and New York) *Mohawk language, the language spoken by the Mohawk people * Mohawk hairstyle, from a hairstyle once thought to have been ...

war leader Joseph Brant, who allied with the British during the revolution, had Skenandoa jailed at

Fort Niagara Fort Niagara is a fortification originally built by New France to protect its interests in North America, specifically control of access between the Niagara River and Lake Ontario, the easternmost of the Great Lakes. The fort is on the river's e ...

for a period in 1779 during the war when the Oneida chief was on a peace mission to the Iroquois. Brant hoped that the British could help contain colonial encroachment against the Iroquois. After the war, Kirkland continued to minister to the Oneida. About 1791 he started planning a

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

, a boys' school to be open to Oneida as well as white young men of the area. In 1793 he received a charter from the state for the Hamilton Oneida Seminary, and in 1794 completed its first building, known as Oneida Hall. By 1812, the seminary developed as the four-year institution known as

. Skenandoa lived into great old age. Nearing the end of his life and having gone blind, the chief is recorded as having said: After Skenandoah died in 1816 at well over a hundred years old, he was buried upon his request (and with the Kirkland family's approval) next to his friend Kirkland, who had died in 1808, on the grounds of Kirkland's home in Clinton, New York. Today the property is known as Harding Farm. As a measure of the respect for the chief, the procession at his funeral in 1816 included students and officers from Hamilton College, the widow Mrs. Kirkland and other members of her family, and numerous town residents, in addition to his son and members of his family and nation.John Warner Barber, Henry Howe, ''Historical Collections of the State of New York''
"Account of the Death of Skenandoa"], S. Tuttle, 1842, pp. 362-364, accessed 5 July 2011 In 1851, both bodies were reinterred in the cemetery of

, of which Kirkland was a co-founder.

Legacy and honors

The Oneida oral tradition tells that Chief Skenandoa provided critical food, sending corn to General

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

and his men during their harsh winter at

Valley Forge Valley Forge functioned as the third of eight winter encampments for the Continental Army's main body, commanded by General George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. In September 1777, Congress fled Philadelphia to escape the ...

in 1777–1778. Washington is said to have named the Shenandoah River and valley in his honor, and subsequently numerous other places in the United States were named Shenandoah. He is also referred to in the title and lyrics of the folk song "

Oh Shenandoah "Oh Shenandoah" (also called "Shenandoah", "Across the Wide Missouri", "Rolling River", "Oh, My Rolling River", "World of Misery''") is a traditional folk song, sung in the Americas, of uncertain origin, dating to the early 19th century. T ...

". A monument to Skenandoa was erected by the Northern Missionary Society at the Hamilton College cemetery. Its inscription recognizes his leadership, friendship with Kirkland, and important contributions to the rebel colonists during the war. In 2002 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Oneida County Historical Society."Polly Cooper"
Oneida Indian Nation The Oneida performer-composer Joanne Shenandoah (1957–2021) was a descendant of Chief Shenandoah.

References

{{authority control Oneida people 1706 births 1816 deaths 18th-century Native Americans Native American Christians Native Americans in the American Revolution Shenandoah River Burials in New York (state)