Central Fire of the Iroquois

Michael Leroy Oberg is distinguished professor of history at SUNY Geneseo and founder of the Geneseo Center for Local and Municipal History. His books include Peacemakers: The Iroquois, the United States, and the Treaty of Canandaigua, 1794 and Uncas: First of the Mohegans. He lives in Rochester, NY.

• Introduction: Carrington’s CrusadeBook I: RisePart I: Creation Stories1. On Turtle’s Back2. Ancestors3. Peace, Power, Righteousness Part II: The Covenant Chain4. Guswenta5. “To Make of Them but One People and Only One Land”6. The French Mission7. Garacontie8. The Covenant Chain9. “Sovereigns, Accountable to None but God Alone”10. The Grand Settlement Part III: Neutrals11. Recovery12. “Everything to Manage”13. “A Subtle, Prudent, and Judicious People”14. “Days of Great Perplexity”15. “Obliged in Justice to Our Country and Our Families”16. “Firm Friends, and Brothers to the English”Book II: FallPart IV: Revolution17. Destruction18. Dispossession19. Diaspora20. The Fire Rekindled Part V: To Exterminate the Nation21. Patriotism22. The Onondaga Problem23. “Obliterate the Whole Tribe”24. “Old Carlisle”Book III: Rise AgainPart VI: A Nation Resurgent25. Self-Determination26. “The Hope of Self-Government”27. “Sinister Purpose”28. “The Indian Problem Is the White People”29. The “Onondaga Indian Way”30. What Kind of NationConclusionNotesAcknowledgmentsIndex

“Developed from its inception in close collaboration with the Onondaga community, Oberg’s important and compelling new book is exceptional for its chronological sweep, well-conceived focus on a strategically important town, and excellent prose.”—James Rice, author of Tales from a Revolution: Bacon's Rebellion and the Transformation of Early America“Oberg’s sweeping history of the Onondaga Nation touches on diplomacy, law, politics, environment, and religion. But it is the Onondaga people themselves, in all their complexity and imperfection, who drive the narrative and linger with the reader. A profound—and deeply human—account.”—Brett Rushforth, author of Bonds of Alliance: Indigenous and Atlantic Slaveries in New France “Oberg masterfully synthesizes centuries of Onondaga oral history and archival sources, tracing the bewildering varieties of settler colonial pressure while detailing the incredible and repeated Onondaga efforts to defend their lands and sovereignty. On every page Oberg convincingly reminds the reader of the presence and importance of the Onondaga nation and, by extension, the millions of Native people who are still here today.”— Linford D. Fisher, author of Stealing America: The Hidden Story of Indigenous Slavery in U.S. History"Working in community with members of the Onondaga Nation, drawing on decades of scholarly experience, Oberg makes an important contribution to the appreciation of Haudenosaunee history and vitality.  Exhaustively researched and effectively written, the book covers five hundred years of Onondaga life with attention to gender, culture, and society as well as to warfare, politics, and economy—a monumental effort that creates a compelling addition to our understanding of Onondaga history as a complex ‘story that does not end.’—Nicole Eustace, author of Covered with Night: A Story of Murder and Indigenous Justice in Early America