Catharine Montour, also known as Queen Catharine (died after 1791), was a prominent

Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...

leader living in ''Queanettquaga,'' a Seneca village of ''Sheaquaga'', informally called Catharine's Town, in western New York. She has often been confused with Elizabeth "Madame" Montour, her aunt or grandmother who was a noted interpreter and adviser to the governor, and with "Queen Esther" Montour, usually described as her sister. Several places in western New York were later named in her honor, after most of the Iroquois had been forced to cede their lands and were driven out of the region.

Early life

Catharine was likely born in Pennsylvania or New York as the daughter of Marguerite Fafard Turpin, an Iroquois-French

métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...

also known as Margaret Montour or "French Margaret." Margaret was either the daughter or niece of Madame Montour. Catharine's father was ''Katarioniecha,'' also known as Peter Quebec. He was described as a

Caughnawaga Mohawk The Kahnawake Mohawk people, Mohawk Territory (, in the Mohawk language, ''Kahnawáˀkye'' in Tuscarora language, Tuscarora) is a First Nations in Canada, First Nations reserve of the Mohawks of Kahnawà:ke on the south shore of the Saint Lawren ...

, referring to converted Catholic Mohawk who lived in the Jesuit mission village now known as

Kahnawake The Kahnawake Mohawk Territory (, in the Mohawk language, ''Kahnawáˀkye'' in Tuscarora) is a First Nations reserve of the Mohawks of Kahnawà:ke on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada, across from Montreal. Establi ...

. It was founded south of

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

across the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...

in Quebec in the early 18th century.Sivertsen, 110. Catharine had a sister named Mary (or Molly), and two brothers: Andrew Montour and Nicholas Quebec. (Her brother Andrew should not be confused with Andrew Montour (c. 1720–1772), who was the son of Elizabeth "Madame" Montour and was probably Catharine's uncle. He was a well-known interpreter in the backcountry of Pennsylvania and Virginia.)

Marriage and family

Catharine Montour married a Seneca chief named Telenemut, also known as Thomas Hudson. She and her husband lived in the Finger Lakes region at ''Queanettquaga,'' a Seneca town that became known as Catharine's Town. After the village was destroyed by rebel continental forces during the 1779

Sullivan Expedition The 1779 Sullivan Expedition (also known as the Sullivan-Clinton Expedition, the Sullivan Campaign, and the Sullivan-Clinton Campaign) was a United States military campaign under the command of General John Sullivan (general), John Sullivan duri ...

in 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 the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, Montour relocated with other Seneca to Niagara. This area was held by the British at the time, although it later became part of New York state. When Schuyler County in western New York was settled by European Americans following the revolution and United States independence, they named several places after Catharine Montour. Historical references to Catharine in her later years are few. In 1791, Catharine's sister Mary sought permission to live at the Moravian mission village of New Salem, near present

Milan, Ohio Milan ( ) is a village in Erie and Huron counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 1,371 at the 2020 census. It is best known as the birthplace and childhood home of Thomas Edison. The Erie County portion of Milan is part of th ...

. Missionary David Zeisberger recorded at the time that Catharine Montour was still living near Niagara.Eugene F. Bliss, ed., ''Diary of David Zeisberger: A Moravian Missionary among the Indians of Ohio'' (Cincinnati: Clarke, 1885), 2:148–49.

Representation in media

"Catharine Montour" was the name of a fictional leading character of a

1917 Events Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 9 – WWI – Battle of Rafa: The last substantial Ottoman Army garrison on the Sinai Peninsula is captured by the Egyptian Expeditionary Force's ...

silent film, '' The Spirit of '76.'' She was portrayed as a mistress of King George of Great Britain and an adventuress in America.

Legacy and honors

Several places in New York were named after Montour in the period of European-American settlement following the American Revolution, all in Schuyler County. * Catharine, New York * Catharine Creek * Montour, New York * Montour Falls, New York

References

;Notes ;Bibliography *Sivertsen, Barbara J. ''Turtles, Wolves, and Bears: A Mohawk Family History,'' Westminster, Maryland: Heritage Books, 1996.

External links