Tuesday is not only Veterans' Day, it also marks the 220th anniversary of The Treaty of Canandaigua. It is the historic treaty that brought peace between the Haudenosaunee and the United States and recognized the sovereignty of the Haudenosaunee to govern and set laws as individual nations.
Officials with the Indian nations say the yearly commemoration is a time of rededication, helping to ensure that the "chain of friendship" and agreements between nations remain current and vibrant.
The treaty was signed on November 11, 1794 by Colonel Timothy Pickering, the official agent of George Washington, and representatives of the Grand Council of Six Nations (Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk and Tuscarora.
At 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, there will be a walk that begins at the Canandaigua Primary School to the Ontario County Courthouse. It is led by Haudenosaunee Chiefs with representatives from the Six Nations and the United States marching side by side. The traditional commemoration ceremony takes place at 2:00p.m. at the courthouse.
The Canandaigua Treaty is featured in a new exhibit at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, called: “Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.”
A treaty at a current exhibit at the Smithsonian is the original that later was signed by George Washington.
