Welcome to the Seneca Council Grounds

William Pryor Letchworth became interested in Native American culture after hearing his father's stories about Cornplanter, the Seneca chief, meeting with Letchworth's great-uncle, John Letchworth, a Quaker preacher in Philadelphia. Sensitive to the injustices suffered by Native Americans on reservations and to their fast-disappearing cultural heritage, he became determined to collect and preserve Native American artifacts. One of his most significant acquisitions was the Revolutionary War-era Seneca Council House, which he rescued from decay in Caneadea, New York, carefully dismantled and numbered log by log, shipped by barge on the Genesee Valley Canal, and reassembled here in 1871. On October 1, 1872, Letchworth organized a rededication ceremony at the Council House, inviting Seneca and Mohawk descendants of Revolutionary War leaders and other notable Native Americans. They called the ceremony The last Council Fire in the Genesee Valley. Former President Millard Fillmore, on Letchworth's behalf, gave each participant a silver coin depicting two hands joined in friendship. In recognition of this event and of Letchworth's efforts on their behalf, the Seneca delegation adopted him into the Wolf Clan and named him Hai-wa-ye-is-tah, the man who always does right.

Genesee Falls, New York · United States