Tuscarora Reservation, New York

The Tuscarora Reservation (Nyučirhéˀę [Rudes, B. "Tuscarora English Dictionary" Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1999] in Tuscarora) is an Indian reservation located in the Town of Lewiston in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 1,138 at the 2000 census. The Tuscarora are a tribe of the Iroquois.

History

The Tuscarora tribe was previously located in North Carolina, but moved north after conflict with European settlers at the beginning of the 18th Century as a result of the Tuscarora War. They first located in the territory of the Oneida tribe in central New York. Subsequently, the Tuscarora, like the Oneida, were allies of the American cause during the American Revolution and the War of 1812, suffering in each case from attacks of the British and their allies. They were given land from the Seneca tribe in 1797, and, in 1803, were granted a reservation in Niagara County.

In 1960, by means of the efforts of Robert Moses, part of the Tuscarora reservation was taken for use by the Niagara Power Authority, leading to a displacement of tribal members and a serious disruption to their economy. Much of the land was used to form a reservoir for the hydroelectric turbines operated by the Power Authority.

In 2003, the Power Authority agreed to compensate the tribe and return some unused land.

The reservation is a composite holding derived from (1) land given to the tribe the Seneca tribe, Land donated by the Holland Land Company, and (3) Trust territory held by the federal government.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the Indian reservation has a total area of 24.0 km² (9.3 mi²), all land. The reservation is located northeast of Niagara Falls, New York.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 1,138 people, 398 households, and 284 families residing in the Indian reservation. The population density was 47.4/km² (122.8/mi²). There were 398 housing units at an average density of 16.6/km² (42.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the Indian reservation was 58.61% White, 9.31% Black or African American, 27.33% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 1.32% from other races, and 2.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.32% of the population.

There were 398 households out of which 43.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 19.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.4% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.86 and the average family size was 3.36.

In the Indian reservation the population was spread out with 34.3% under the age of 18, 13.7% from 18 to 24, 30.0% from 25 to 44, 14.3% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females there were 104.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.4 males.

The median income for a household in the Indian reservation was $32,500, and the median income for a family was $38,333. Males had a median income of $33,281 versus $25,074 for females. The per capita income for the Indian reservation was $14,427. About 9.9% of families and 13.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.4% of those under age 18 and 9.6% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

* [http://www.epa.gov/region02/nations/tusca.htm Tuscarora information]
* [http://tuscaroras.com/jtwigle/pages/tuscarora-rez.shtml Tuscarora reservation land]
* [http://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/legends/tuscarora.htm Early Tuscarora history]