Fort Necessity
National Park Service
U.S. Department of the Interior
Fort Necessity
National Battlefield
Penn’s Treaty with the Indians by Benjamin West, 1771
Art print courtesy of the PA Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia.
Gift of Mrs. Sarah Harrison (The Joseph Harrison Jr. Collection)
Story of Queen Allaquippa
“…the most esteemed of their women do sometimes speak in council…He told me she was an empress; and they gave much heed to what she said
among them…” T. Chalkley, 1706, Conestoga, Pennsylvania.
Few know the story of this Iroquois matriarch and staunch English ally named Queen Allaquippa. Yet, the town of
Aliquippa, Pennsylvania is still named for her. In the 18th century, other area sites were also named after her including:
Allaquippa Town, Allaquippa Creek, Allaquippa Island, and Allaquippa Cornfield.
The name Allaquippa is actually a Delaware (Lenape) word that means Hat or Cap. Even though her name was in the
Delaware language, she was usually referred to as being Iroquois. In the 18th century, it was not unusual for an
American Indian to be from one nation yet have a name given to them from another nation.
Queen Allaquippa was an Iroquois matriarch probably from the Seneca Nation. The Seneca are part of the Iroquois
Confederacy, a powerful government eventually encompassing six nations: the Seneca, Mohawk, Onondaga, Oneida,
Cayuga, and Tuscarora. In the 18th century, the Iroquois government believed they had dominance over other Indian
nations in the Ohio River Valley.
Early Life
There is little documentation about Queen
Allaquippa's early life. She was born sometime
around 1680. Her father was probably from the
ancient Susquehannock Nation, now Iroquoian,
who signed a treaty with William Penn. The West
picture above is the artist’s rendition of the treaty.
Allaquippa attended the treaty and oral history
implies that she is in the painting
Allaquippa lived at Conestoga, Pennsylvania and
had at least one son, named Canachquasy. In 1701,
they traveled to New Castle, Delaware to say
farewell to William Penn who was returning to
England. By 1731, the family began to move
westward and eventually settled near the Forks of
the Ohio, adjacent to where McKees Rocks,
Pennsylvania is today.
Influence
Women in the Iroquois play an influential role in
Indian politics. The women place representatives
into council and they can advise what topics are to
be discussed in council meetings. At times, they will
speak at the meetings. With Allaquippa Town built
along the river, Queen Allaquippa was in a perfect
area to conduct and control business. The rivers
permitted transportation for fur traders and
diplomats to stop and speak with Queen Allaquippa
before and after traveling to nearby Logstown
(Ambridge, PA) where the Indians conducted
council meetings. Extracts from three journals help
to describe her influence in the area. Conrad
Weiser, the Pennsylvania diplomat, visited with her
on his way to Logstown in 1748. Pennsylvania
hoped the Indians would sign a treaty to ally with
the English and let fur traders come to the area. He
wrote, "We dined in a Seneka town where an old
Seneka woman reigns with great authority. We
dined at her house and they all used us very well.”
Pennsylvania was successful in forming a treaty with
the Indians.
intentions were with such a large contingent.
Celeron wrote, "The Iroquois inhabit this place,
and it is an old woman of this nation who governs
it. She regards herself as sovereign; she is entirely
devoted to the English. ...This place is one of the
most beautiful that until the present I have seen
on La Belle Riviere."
In 1752, Virginia diplomats stopped at Allaquippa
Town on the way to Logstown in the hopes of
forming a treaty with the Indians to allow Virginia
fur traders to trade here and to live here. Before the
council meeting she presented a string of wampum
to the Virginian diplomats to “clear their way to
Loggs Town.” The Virginian government was
successful in forming a treaty with the Indians.
In 1749 the French captain, Celeron de Blainville led
an expedition with approximately 245 men to claim
the Ohio River Valley for the French. Celeron tried
to meet with Queen Allaquippa but she and most of
her people had left town before they came. It was
well known she was an ally to the English. She may
have left because she was unsure what Celeron's
Allaquippa and
Washington
Due to the 1752 treaty between the Indians and
Virginia, George Washington was ordered by the
Virginian Governor to deliver a message to the
French to leave the Ohio River Valley. The French
were polite to Washington but they refused to leave.
Washington and his guide, Christopeher Gist, did
not originally stop at Allaquippa Town on the way
to the French fort. However, they did stop on their
return. Queen Allaquippa rebuked Washington for
not stopping on the way to the French at Ft. Le
Boeuf. Washington wrote, "…she expressed great
concern that we passed her in going to the fort."
(Le Boeuf). She told Gist, "…she would never go
down the river Alleghany to live, except if the
English build a fort, and then she would go and
live there.” For years the Indians had
unsuccessfully encouraged the Pennsylvania
government to build a fort in this area. Now that
the Indians had signed a treaty with the Virginians, it
was obvious that Allaquippa would continue to
encourage Virginia to build a fort. As Washington
returned home, he passed Virginian soldiers
planning to build a fort at the Forks of the Ohio
(Pittsburgh, PA). In 1754, Washington was sent to
re-enforce these Virginian soldiers. Washington
and his troops were at the Great Meadows when an
Iroquois emissary named The Half King sent a
message that the French were nearby. On May 28th,
Washington, The Half King, and their men
surrounded the French at an outcropping of rocks
about 6 miles from the Great Meadows. A skirmish
ensued and the French lost 13 people, including
Ensign Jumonville. Worried about French
retaliation, Washington returned to the Great
Meadows and built a Fort of Necessity. The Half
King went back to Queen Allaquippa. By June 1st,
The Half King and Queen Allaquippa, who was
about 74 years old at this time, brought 30 families
to the Great Meadows. This numbered almost 100
people, mostly women and children. Washington
had few food supplies so he requested the women
and children be taken to Aughwick (Shirleysburg,
PA) to be placed under English protection. He also
asked the Indian warriors to stay and fight the
French. In mid-June, representatives from 10
different Indian nations came for a council meeting
to discuss Washington's request. Before the council
began, Washington wrote, "Queen Alliquippa
desir'd her Son (who is really a great Warrior)
might be taken into Council, as She was declining
and unfit for Business and that he should have an
English Name given him." Washington gave
Canachquasy the name of Col. Fairfax and told him
it meant "first in council.” The council did not go
well for Washington. The Indians had seen that the
French outnumbered the British. They knew
Washington had little military experience. The
Iroquois council had previously ordered the Indians
to stay neutral. The Indians’ first priority was the
safety of their women and children. The Indian
warriors decided to take their families to Aughwick
and left Washington and his men to fight the
French.
Death of a Queen
After Washington surrendered Fort Necessity to the
French, life did not go well for the Indians at
Aughwick. By October of 1754, The Half King was
dead. In December of 1754, George Croghan, the
Indian agent wrote, “Hear is the Half King’s famely
in pour condition and Alequeapy ye old Quine is
dead and left several children…”
Today, few people know about Queen Allaquippa.
Yet, it was her loyalty to the English which helped to
set into motion a series of events that facilitated the
start of the French and Indian War. This world war
eventually led to English control of most of North
America and set the stage for the American
Revolution.
EXPERIENCE YOUR AMERICA
Feb-08
rev Jun-09
