Tammany Day celebrations, during which the
monarchy is parodied in a mock crowning of
King Tammany.
July 12
The Second Continental Congress
establishes three Indian departments.
The Second Continental Congress establishes
three departments to oversee the colonies’ dealings
with Indian tribes. The Northern Department is
to oversee the Iroquois Confederacy and the Indi-
ans living to the north of their lands; the Southern
Department is to deal with the Cherokee and all
tribes living to the south of them; and the Middle
Department is responsible for all Indian groups in
between. The Congress appoints three commis-
sioners to the Northern and Middle Departments
and five to the Southern Department.
The commissioners are charged with identi-
fying any British agents who try to turn Indians
against the colonies and also with attempting to
persuade tribes to ally themselves with colonists.
Initially, the American officials will be leery of
fighting alongside Indians, whom they considered
to be undisciplined in war. But there are more
than 35,000 Indian warriors in the East, and the
American officials come to see the wisdom in at-
tempting to tap this vast fighting force. Despite
their efforts, however, the commissioners will
largely be unsuccessful at forging alliances, be-
cause most Indian groups view the colonists as the
greatest threat to their lands and societies. The
officials also lack supplies, hindering their ability
to earn the favor of Indian leaders through tradi-
tional gift giving.
August
The Iroquois meet with U.S. commissioners
at German Flats.
Fearing that the six Iroquois tribes will fight on the
side of the English in the American Revolution,
representatives of the colonial government meet
with Iroquois leaders at German Flats, New York.
The Americans, explaining that they will fight a war
against England to protect their civil rights, succeed
in persuading the Iroquois to declare neutrality in
the upcoming war. During the meeting, Benjamin
Franklin presents the Pine Tree Flag as the first
flag of the United States. The imagery is similar to
that of the Great Tree of Peace, an Iroquois symbol
used to represent the confederacy (see entry for CA.
1400).September 12 to October 12The Shawnee negotiate the Treaty of
Camp Charlotte.
At a conference at Camp Charlotte, Shawnee lead-
ers agree to a peace treaty that formally ends Lord
Dunmore’s War (see entries for APRIL 30, 1774,
and for OCTOBER 9, 1774). The Shawnee prom-
ise to remain north of the Ohio River, effectively
ceding their hunting territory in Kentucky. Soon,
however, tribal hunters will violate the treaty
terms by returning to their old hunting grounds.
The tribe will also break a provision guaranteeing
their neutrality in the American Revolution when
the Shawnee ally themselves to the British cause in
1777.NovemberMohawk leader Joseph Brant meets with
King George III.
With the American colonists threatening to rebel,
Joseph Brant, a Mohawk leader and secretary to
Superintendent of Indian affairs Guy Johnson,
travels to London, England. There he meets with
King George III, who assures Brant that the Brit-
ish can win a war with the Americans. He also
promises that if the Iroquois help them fight
the rebels, the Indians will be allowed to stay in
their homelands. Brant returns home convinced
that the Iroquois should give the English their
support.