There were two significant Tuscarora lineages during the 17th and early 18th centuries in North Carolina and Virginia. Barron DeGraffenreid ended the Tuscarora War by enslaving the children and transferring Chattokka to the town of New Bern. About 3,000 Tuscarora people survived the war, although 2,000 abandoned their homes and forts. To aid in the fight against Yamasee, 70 Tuscarora survivors travelled to South Carolina, settling in Port Royal. The Tuscarora people remaining in North Carolina signed a treaty allotting them a reservation along the Pamlico River.
In the early 1700s, North Carolina passed it’s first slave statue, denying voting rights to African Americans and Native Americans. By 1725, Tuscarora lineages populated the territory surrounding Brunswick Town, North Carolina and signed a treaty establishing the 1731 North Carolina Indian Trade Commission. In 1763 and 1766, members of Tuscarora nation settled in Pennsylvania and New York and by 1767, there were believed to be only 104 Tuscarora people living in the Carolinas.
Today, Tuscarora people primarily reside on and off reserve lands in New York state and Ontario, including in Brantford, Ontario. Despite their difficult history, they continue to exist as a sovereign nation governed by chiefs, clan mothers, and faith-keepers. They have managed to maintain their culture, as well as most of their traditions, such as playing "stickball," a traditional form of lacrosse that was used to non-violently settle disputes amongst nations.
