Join Russ Gifford for this look at a unique native culture in America and their later interactions as Europeans entered North America.

The League of the Iroquois, located in the Great Lakes region of what is now upper New York state, is North America’s first political union of independent nations. From the structure of their houses to the structure of their vast interrelated nations, this talk will take us inside this ground-breaking confederacy that represented a non-aggression pact among the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk nations. Sometime in the 16th century, these original five joined together to stop the constant blood feuds, and the results changed their world for over two centuries.

This talk will focus on their lifestyle and the structure of the Iroquois clan system. Learn how the long multifamily houses used by these Woodlands Era cultures became the metaphor for the resulting relationships between these nations. The important role played by women in the political system will also be explored, as well as the many notable achievements of the League.