Little Caughnawaga is a historical neighborhood in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, U.S., with a large population of Kahnawake Mohawks, as well as those from

Akwesasne The Mohawk Nation at Akwesasne ( ; ; ) is a Mohawk Nation (''Kanienʼkehá:ka'') territory that straddles the intersection of international (United States and Canada) borders and provincial (Ontario and Quebec) boundaries on both banks of the St ...

and other

Haudenosaunee 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 ...

peoples, many of whom were members of the Brooklyn Local 361 Ironworkers’ Union who were known as the Mohawk skywalkers and their families. During the mid-20th century, an area of ten square blocks north of the

Gowanus Canal The Gowanus Canal (originally known as Gowanus Creek) is a canal in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, on the westernmost portion of Long Island. Once a vital cargo transportation hub, the canal has seen decreasing use since the mid-20th ...

contained the largest Mohawk settlement beyond the borders of Canada. The neighborhood is now called

Boerum Hill Boerum Hill (pronounced ) is a small neighborhood in the northwestern portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bounded by Schermerhorn Street to the north and Fourth Avenue to the east. The western border is variously given as either ...

or North Gowanus. In the 1950s there were as many as 700 Mohawk people living in Little Caughnawaga. In the 1920s Indigenous people from

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 ...

began moving into this section of Brooklyn. This was during a time when New York City was transforming and skyscrapers and bridges were being built. A community gathering place for these

ironworkers An ironworker is a tradesman who works in the iron-working industry. Ironworkers assemble the structural framework in accordance with engineering drawings, engineered drawings and install the metal support pieces for new buildings. They also ...

included the Doray Tavern, informally known as the Wigwam (now called Hank's Bar or Saloon). It was located on Nevins Street between State Street and Atlantic Avenue. An alternative name for the neighborhood was Downtown Caughnawaga. The reason why Mohawks moved to the area is because the Brooklyn Local 361 of the Bridge, Structural and Ornamental Ironworker’s Union was located nearby on Atlantic Avenue between Third and Fourth avenues. While the men worked as ironworkers, the Mohawk women of Little Caughnawaga had jobs as housekeepers as well as holding positions at local factories, for example, the Fred Goat Company metal-stamping plant at the corner of Third Avenue and Dean Street. Some of the community members would attend the

Cuyler Presbyterian Church Cuyler Presbyterian Church, also known as Cuyler Chapel and Cuyler Presbyterian Church and Parsonage, is a historic Presbyterianism, Presbyterian Church (building), church at 358–360 Pacific Street in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, New York. ...

, which was located at Pacific Street between Hoyt and Bond. During the 1940s and early 1950s, the pastor, David M. Cory (who was non-Indigenous) gave his sermons in the

Mohawk language Mohawk () or (' anguageof the Flint Place') is an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian language currently spoken by around 3,500 people of the Mohawk people, Mohawk nation, located primarily in current or former Haudenosaunee territories, predomin ...

In the media

In 2005, a film was made by Reaghan Tarbell, titled ''Little Caughnawaga'', about the neighborhood and the Indigenous people of Canada who lived there. Tarbell expanded upon the topic in her 2008 film, ''To Brooklyn and Back: A Mohawk Journey''. In 2021, ''Building Brooklyn: Like Coming Home'' Season 4, Episode 1 was produced that featured the stories of the women of Little Caughnawaga who helped establish the neighborhood community.

References

{{reflist

In the media

References

Further reading