Onondaga Indians
Current Sign Text |
ONONDAGA INDIANS |
Problematic issues |
1)
The village of Salina was not incorporated
until 1824. A more accurate name for the white
settlement in 1703 was "Salt Point". In 1798-99 the
area (Washington Square Park today) on the high
ground was called "Salina", and the white inhabitants
mentioned on the marker were in this general vicinity. |
Location |
Corner of Erie Blvd. and Oswego Blvd. between city parking lot and sidewalk. |
Significance |
The actual area of the 1793 event was 1 1/2 miles northwest of the marker, somewhere between today's Inner Harbor and Washington Square Park. Site for the marker may have been chosen due to available space offered by the city. Also, in the 1930s "oil city" was in process and therefore not appropriate. Washington Square Park may have been a better choice, but there was already the large Kirkpatrick Monument there and perhaps the City did not want to add another. |
Indigenous Place Names for Site |
|
Circumstances of Marker Placement |
1935 - Syracuse Chapter of Sons of the Revolution joint project with the State Education Dept. and Syracuse Parks Department. |
Additional Information |
Marker does not indicate that the white inhabitants in 1793 were actually squatters on Onondaga territory. Based on the 1788 treaty with New York the white settlement mentioned on the marker was within Onondaga Nation boundaries. Between 1793 and 1795 the state took all of the "Salina" area in questionable deals which the Onondaga do not consider to this day to be legitimate. |
Sources |
Syracuse Post Standard articles from 6/15/35, 2/2/47, and
11/24/94 |
Review Details |
Researched by Richard Zalewski, 2010-11 |