Ontario Power Generation

AKWESASNE’S STORY

Courtesy of the Mohawks of Akwesasne

Since time immemorial, Mohawk people have travelled, hunted and lived along what is now known as the St. Lawrence River. Due to the abundance of fish and other wildlife, Mohawks settled in an area near the Long Sault Rapids known as “Akwesasne,” a Mohawk word meaning “land where the partridge drums.” Oral history and accounts from Akwesasne residents say that the sound of the rapids was like that of a partridge “drumming” its chest during courtship rituals.

In order to appreciate Akwesasne’s oral history and accounts it is necessary to give a description of what Akwesasne was, around the time period of the construction of the R.H. Saunders Generating Station. From all accounts it can be said that the people were living independent and to some degree, isolated from the massive and rapid changes occurring in North American society. In the 1940s and early ‘50s, there were no telephones, electricity, very few roads, a level of schooling to the grade three level, essentially very little in terms of what we might now consider to be the comforts of life. The primary language of the Territory was Mohawk, with a small number of bilingual speakers of Mohawk and English. There were a number of people who had some comprehension of the French language, although they couldn't speak it. The use of the English or French languages seems to have been exclusively related to the conduct of business with neighbouring communities. The economic system that was in place at this time was a barter system which was in a state of transition towards becoming a monetary system. What this actually means is that money was in short supply within the Territory, and that this money was used primarily for the purpose of conducting business in outside communities, both American and Canadian. Within the Territory, the barter system dominated until the early 1950s.

During this time in Akwesasne history, we see increasing numbers of Mohawks participating in the Canadian and American labour markets. The two most identifiable male occupations are high steel worker and lumberjack. It seems that the textile industry was the area where Mohawk women were most attracted to during this time period. The only evidence of European-style industrialisation in the Territory is the Roundpoint/Chisholm Lacrosse Factory on Cornwall Island and yet a significant portion of this operation is cottage industry style.

The number of families on the mainland and on the upstream islands is unknown. The majority of the remaining Akwesasne's working population are involved in traditional style occupations such as agriculture, farming, hunting, trapping and basketry. It is mainly for this reason that people preferred to live on the islands. The mainland was not viewed as a preferred living area because it posed transportation difficulties. The river was the only source of year-round local transportation to carry on traditional activities such as fishing, trapping and the farming of herbal medicines. The cyclical activities of the Mohawks of Akwesasne are intricately tied to the St. Lawrence River system. Trade and trapping take them into the Williamsburg, Brockville and Smiths Falls areas.

There are many Mohawks who view the river system as being their "life-cord" of sorts. There is no word in the Mohawk language at this time for "pollution," the river system is healthy, the air is healthy, the land and vegetation are healthy and the people are healthy.

The local band council is created under the statutory authority of the Indian Act of Canada and the same is true of the Indian Agent. (It should be noted that the primary reason for separating the Indian Agent from the band council is that in practice they were in fact operating independent of each other. The band council viewed themselves as representative of a population of Akwesasne and viewed the Indian Agent as a representative of the Canadian government.)

It should be noted that the community of Akwesasne does not draw the distinction between the Seaway Project and the Hydro-Electric Project. Rather, the community tends to use the term "the Seaway" which includes both projects and any associated works.

The clear majority of elders viewed the Seaway as something bad for Akwesasne because of the destruction of the river, the destruction of the fish population, and then other environmental factors such as the drainage and loss of arable land, the creation of new wetlands, and pollution.

The following are samples of the thoughts of the people and elders of Akwesasne:

• “that they were completely dependent upon no one and that each person did whatever they had to do to survive. For some it was fishing, for others farming or trapping or logging or basketry. Nobody was really left without; people helped each other, especially through the harsh winters here.”
• “that the river was the main resource and provider for the community; it provided food, drinking water, transportation and recreational facilities. There was not a family in Akwesasne that did not rely on the river for one thing or another.”
• “that the fishery just before the construction and Seaway was bountiful and not only provided local food but was also a revenue source for many families. The catches of sturgeon and sturgeon eggs were routinely taken to Massena (NY) to be sent by rail to New York city and Buffalo. That in addition to fishermen, community people were employed to assist in the cleaning of the fish and also employed to assist in the transport of the fish products to Massena or to local markets.”
• “that it was not unusual for fishermen to catch sturgeon in excess of 100 pounds.”
• “that where the R.H. Saunders Dam currently rests was a popular spear fishing site for the men from Cornwall Island.”
• “that the area at the foot of the Long Sault rapids was also a popular fishing site where fish-traps were used.”
• “that before the Seaway, fish species such as white fish, lings, silver bass and black sturgeon were part of the St. Lawrence River fishery and that these species went into extinction shortly after the Seaway was completed. There is also an account from Toussaint Island that seals used to be seen in that area before the Seaway.”
• “that the fishermen relied on the river's currents to identify fishing locations and the dam (R.H. Saunders) caused a major water diversion changing the river's currents. After the Seaway, the fishermen could no longer identify good fishing sites because of the changes to the water currents.”
• “that the dam created a barrier for the fish to move westward into their spawning grounds.”
• “that shortly after the completion of the dam, a species of European carp appeared which was very destructive and nearly eliminated a number of indigenous species of fish.”
• “that they had heard of a possible Seaway as far back as in the 1920s but it had been regarded as "loose-talk" (i.e., fiction). In the early 1950s many still didn't believe that a Seaway was being constructed. Many thought it was an expansion of the existing canal system. Many didn't know that a dam was being constructed until Mohawk men working at that site brought the news back to the community as to what they were working on. One of the men, by accident, had an opportunity to examine the blueprints for the R.H. Saunders Dam. But by this time, many felt it was too late to do anything about the construction activity.”
• “that they were told by the band council and the Indian Agent that it was senseless to oppose the Seaway because it was backed by the Canadian government, and the government always gets what it wants. That they were advised to try and get what you can for your land from the Seaway.”
• “that there were elders who steadfastly refused to accept any money from the Seaway for land taken from them. There are accounts that some elders died knowing that their ‘seaway checks’ were with the Indian Agent.”
• “that there were a couple of band councillors who were opposed to the Seaway, a couple of band councillors who were in favour of the Seaway, but most of the band councillors mainly from St. Regis and Snye were undecided. The latter group tended to view the Seaway as affecting Cornwall Island primarily and relied on the Cornwall Island councillors for decisions which they would then back. The band council was not unified on the issue of the Seaway, which the Indian Agent was quick to play on.”
• “that many of the resolutions of the band council were subsequently changed by the Indian Agent. That meetings were purposely postponed and rescheduled until the Indian Agent felt he had the correct councillors to pass key resolutions.”
• “that most of the band council business required the service of a Mohawk translator and that most of band council's deliberations were in the Mohawk language, much of which is unrecorded because the Indian Agent wrote the minutes of the meetings.”

(source: Final Elders Report, August 31, 1995)