Tuscarora Indian Nation

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Tuscarora Reservation

The Tuscarora Reservation is located in Niagara County, New York about 10 minutes outside of Niagara Falls, and 20 minutes from Buffalo, New York. The Tuscarora Reservation is home to Tuscarora Nation and their Iroquois relatives and guests. The governing body of the tribe is the Tuscarora Chiefs Council. The tribe still maintains its traditional form of government, despite earlier U.S. Policy to eliminate traditional practices and replace them with constitutional democracies under the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) in the early part of the twentieth century. The Tuscarora Nation is among a handful of federally acknowledged tribes that has kept its original form of governing. This governing body, the Council of Chiefs, is federally acknowledged which means a government-to-government relationship exists between the United States and the Tuscarora Nation. See John's Statement on Tribal Governance if you have any questions about this issue.

The Tuscarora Reservation is not a classic reservation as defined in the federal Indian law. There are three tracts to the land and each has a unique status. The first tract, rather small in the Northwest corner is land lent by the Senecas in perpetuity. The second larger tract is the Holland Land gift to the Tuscarora Nation who have title to it. The third tract of land, and the largest is the bottom half which is land held in Trust by the U.S. Government for use of the nation, which is the definition of a reservation according to most U.S. Law. During the Niagara Power Project it is this last piece, the one held in trust, that had a piece of it taken for the project.

Map showing the three main parcels of land.

Facilities

The Tuscarora School provides education to children on the reservation for the elementary grade levels; There is a gym which houses a basket ball court, called the Old Gym, and is used for tribal activities as well; The Council House, which is not in use in recent years; A Baptist church and the old Mission Church.

File Created: 23 September 2001
Last Modified: Wed, July 23, 2014 at 02:59 PM

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Copyright © 2001, John Wigle. All rights reserved. Any legal information provide on my pages are for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult your attorney for the specific legal options of your case.