General John Sullivan’s Indian Expedition 1779

A centennial commemoration of an American attack on the Iroquois during the Revolutionary War.

In 1779, as part of the American Revolutionary War, General George Washington sent Major John Sullivan to disrupt and destroy the homeland of the Six Nations of the Iroquois, an invaluable ally of the British. Nearly 5,000 troops broke into two parties and traveled up the Susquehanna and Mohawk Rivers, linking up in western New York State.

Over 40 Iroquois villages were destroyed during the expedition, described by some scholars as a genocide, and thousands of refugees were driven into the British lines. However, the mission failed to take large contingents of prisoners (essentially hostages to ensure good behavior) and the violent action ensured the Iroquois would be a perennial enemy of the Americans after independence.

Some of that hindsight is evident in this commemorative volume, written by the New York Secretary of State Frederick Cook and published in Auburn in 1887. It was organized to celebrate the ‘success’ of the expedition and the U.S. centennial. Its nearly 600 pages include contemporary reports, numerous maps, engraved portraits, and more. Five fold-out plans in the front and back pockets are reproduced from the originals at the New York Historical Society and show the route of Sullivan and his troops.

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