Oneida Tribe Facts for Kids

Vanishing Homelands

The Oneida homeland once covered six million acres in the State of New York. From the time of the American Revolution, their land began to shrink. The State of New York and white land speculators forced the Oneida to sell a great deal of their lands during the early 1800s. By 1839, they had only 4500 acres left.

In 1816 a Mohawk minister, Eleazar Williams, and a white minister, Jedidah Morese, began working with the U. S. government and tribes of Wisconsin to relocate the Oneida Indians to Wisconsin. They believed that the State of New York would ultimately take everything that was Oneidan and leave the tribe homeless. The Oneida thought the move would help them to avoid conflicts with the whites and enable them to live their own lives. A treaty was reached in 1838 and 65,400 acres was given to the Oneida. Today, they live on this same reservation. Six hundred and fifty-four Oneida lived on the new reservation by 1838. A small group of Oneida stayed on the New York reservation and moved to Ontario, Canada.

The Oneida have three clans, the Bear, Wolf and Turtle. The Bear Clan are the caretakers of the earth's medicines. Medicine men and women belong to the Bear Clan. The Wolf clan are the keepers of fire and information. They are the pathfinders of the tribe and responsible for teaching the people who to live as their Creator intended. The Turtle clan carries the earth on its back and is responsible for the environment.

Today's lacrosse sticks are essentially the same as those used by the Oneida.Hemera Technologies/Photos.com/Getty Images

The game of lacrosse was invented by the Iroquois people. The Oneida call it Gal-lahs. When the Iroquois played, the field could range from the length of the village to several miles. Sometimes the game was played to set land boundaries between the Six Nations or to settle disputes. The Oneida creation story says that it is because they play lacrosse that the inhabitants of the spirit world live healthy lives and never die.

During the American Revolution, the Oneida and the Tuscorora took the side of the colonists in the fight for independence. The Oneida were an important asset to the garrison at Ft. Stanwix in New York. The Oneida served as warriors, scouts, and spies.