John Deseronto
Encyclopedia
Captain John DeserontoCaptain John Deseronto (alt. Deserontyon, (Odeserundiye) UE (c1740's - 1811) was a prominent Mohawk war chief during the American Revolutionary War
. He was born in the 1740s, most likely in the Mohawk valley
. Educated in a white school, he had become acculturated to white customs. In 1759, during the French and Indian War
, he was at the Battle of Fort Niagara
, and the following year he was at the Battle of Quebec. In the summer of 1764, he accompanied John Bradstreet
when he went to Fort Detroit
at the end of Pontiac's Rebellion
.
where he owned a handsome house and 82 acres (331,842.5 m²) of rich flat land. He had a wagon, plough, harrow, and ten beaver traps.. During this war he sided with the British and the loyalist Johnson family. He accompanied Guy Johnson
when he left for Canada in the summer of 1775. Deseronto went back to the Mohawk valley the following year and met with Sir John Johnson. In May 1776, he again met with John Johnson and helped him escape to Montreal.
In July 1777, he was the leader of a party which assessed the defences of Fort Stanwix
. On July 14, they surprised and attacked Ensign John Spoor's work detail as it was outside the fort cutting sod. Deseronto passed the information that the fort was strongly garrisoned back to Daniel Claus
. Barry St. Leger decided to proceed without adequate artillery regardless. He took part in the siege and the Battle of Oriskany
. After St. Leger had retreated, Deseronto stayed behind to enjoy a meal at St. Leger's table. A scouting party from the fort found Deseronto in St. Leger's tent and shot him with buck and ball in the left arm and breast. Deseronto was seriously wounded and almost lost his arm. He continued to Fort Hunter where he set about preparing the village for a mass departure. On September 4, he arrived at Burgoyne's camp with the Fort Hunter families and several prominent loyalists, totalling about 150 persons. The villagers had abandoned their homes after hearing about the sacking of the Upper Castle. The party had to fight through the 3rd New Hampshire Regiment
to reach Burgoyne's camp. They killed seven of the Americans and Deseronto was freshly wounded. They settled at La Chine, near Montreal and were supplied by the British in exchange for the war service.
In 1779 he led two scouting parties up the Richelieu valley. In 1780, he took part in Sir John Johnson's raid on the Mohawk valley and he was at the Battle of Klock's Field
. In 1781 he led multiple raids into the Mohawk valley destroying mills and cattle and taking prisoners. In the spring of 1782, Deseronto and Captain Isaac Hill destroyed the mill at Little Falls on the Mohawk and took some prisoners.
met with Frederick Haldimand
to discuss the loss of their land in New York. Haldimand promised to resettle the Mohawks near the Bay of Quinte
, on the north east shore of Lake Ontario
, in present day Ontario
, Canada
. Brant decided that he preferred to settle on the Grand River
. Brant and Johnson ridiculed Deseronto's decision to stay at the Bay of Quinte. Haldimand purchased and granted the Mohawks a tract 12 by 13 miles (20.9 km) on the Bay of Quinte. About 200 Mohawks settled with him at what is now called the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, Ontario
. The Mohawks of the Lower Castle primarily settled at the Bay of Quinte, while those of the Upper Castle settled on the Grand River. Deseronto was personally granted a lump sum payment of about eight hundred pounds for his losses, 3000 acres (12.1 km²) of land, and an annual pension of forty five pounds.
In 1797, Deseronto and Joseph Brant
went to New York where they, in exchange for a small sum, they agreed to extinguish Mohawk land claims within New York.
He died January 7, 1811 at the Mohawk settlement on the Bay of Quinte in Upper Canada
.
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. He was born in the 1740s, most likely in the Mohawk valley
Mohawk Valley
The Mohawk Valley region of the U.S. state of New York is the area surrounding the Mohawk River, sandwiched between the Adirondack Mountains and Catskill Mountains....
. Educated in a white school, he had become acculturated to white customs. In 1759, during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
, he was at the Battle of Fort Niagara
Battle of Fort Niagara
The Battle of Fort Niagara was a siege late in the French and Indian War, the North American theatre of the Seven Years' War. The British siege of Fort Niagara in July 1759 was part of a campaign to remove French control of the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley regions, making possible a western invasion...
, and the following year he was at the Battle of Quebec. In the summer of 1764, he accompanied John Bradstreet
John Bradstreet
Major General John Bradstreet was a British Army officer during the French and Indian War, King George's War, and Pontiac's Rebellion...
when he went to Fort Detroit
Fort Detroit
Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit or Fort Détroit was a fort established by the French officer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac in 1701. The location of the former fort is now in the city of Detroit in the U.S...
at the end of Pontiac's Rebellion
Pontiac's Rebellion
Pontiac's War, Pontiac's Conspiracy, or Pontiac's Rebellion was a war that was launched in 1763 by a loose confederation of elements of Native American tribes primarily from the Great Lakes region, the Illinois Country, and Ohio Country who were dissatisfied with British postwar policies in the...
.
American Revolution
When the American Revolution started Deseronto was a chief of the Mohawks, living at Fort HunterFort Hunter, New York
Fort Hunter is a hamlet in the town of Florida in Montgomery County, New York, on the Mohawk River at Schoharie Creek.In the 18th century, Fort Hunter was built as a fort near the location of one of the two primary Mohawk settlements. The Mohawk name for the village was rendered variously in...
where he owned a handsome house and 82 acres (331,842.5 m²) of rich flat land. He had a wagon, plough, harrow, and ten beaver traps.. During this war he sided with the British and the loyalist Johnson family. He accompanied Guy Johnson
Guy Johnson
Guy Johnson was an Irish-born military officer and diplomat for the Crown during the American War of Independence. He had migrated to the Province of New York as a young man and worked with his uncle, Sir William Johnson, British Superintendent of Indian Affairs of the northern colonies. He was...
when he left for Canada in the summer of 1775. Deseronto went back to the Mohawk valley the following year and met with Sir John Johnson. In May 1776, he again met with John Johnson and helped him escape to Montreal.
In July 1777, he was the leader of a party which assessed the defences of Fort Stanwix
Fort Stanwix
Fort Stanwix was a colonial fort whose construction was started on August 26, 1758, by British General John Stanwix, at the location of present-day Rome, New York, but was not completed until about 1762. The fort guarded a portage known as the Oneida Carrying Place during the French and Indian War...
. On July 14, they surprised and attacked Ensign John Spoor's work detail as it was outside the fort cutting sod. Deseronto passed the information that the fort was strongly garrisoned back to Daniel Claus
Daniel Claus
Christian Daniel Claus was a commissioner of Indian affairs and a prominent Loyalist during the American Revolution.He was born September 13, 1727 at Bönnigheim, Württemberg the son of Adam Frederic Claus and his wife Anna Dorothea. He arrived in America in 1749...
. Barry St. Leger decided to proceed without adequate artillery regardless. He took part in the siege and the Battle of Oriskany
Battle of Oriskany
The Battle of Oriskany, fought on August 6, 1777, was one of the bloodiest battles in the North American theater of the American Revolutionary War and a significant engagement of the Saratoga campaign...
. After St. Leger had retreated, Deseronto stayed behind to enjoy a meal at St. Leger's table. A scouting party from the fort found Deseronto in St. Leger's tent and shot him with buck and ball in the left arm and breast. Deseronto was seriously wounded and almost lost his arm. He continued to Fort Hunter where he set about preparing the village for a mass departure. On September 4, he arrived at Burgoyne's camp with the Fort Hunter families and several prominent loyalists, totalling about 150 persons. The villagers had abandoned their homes after hearing about the sacking of the Upper Castle. The party had to fight through the 3rd New Hampshire Regiment
3rd New Hampshire Regiment
The 3rd New Hampshire Regiment, also known as the 2nd Continental Regiment, was authorized on 22 May 1775, organized 1-8 June 1775, and adopted into the Continental Army on 14 June, 1775, as the third of three regiments raised by the state of New Hampshire during the American Revolution...
to reach Burgoyne's camp. They killed seven of the Americans and Deseronto was freshly wounded. They settled at La Chine, near Montreal and were supplied by the British in exchange for the war service.
In 1779 he led two scouting parties up the Richelieu valley. In 1780, he took part in Sir John Johnson's raid on the Mohawk valley and he was at the Battle of Klock's Field
Battle of Klock's Field
The Battle of Klock's Field, also called the Battle of Failing's Orchard; and occasionally as the Battle of Nellis Flatts, was an encounter between Albany County, New York militia and a British-supported expedition of Indians and Loyalist led by Lieutenant Colonel Sir John Johnson and Captain...
. In 1781 he led multiple raids into the Mohawk valley destroying mills and cattle and taking prisoners. In the spring of 1782, Deseronto and Captain Isaac Hill destroyed the mill at Little Falls on the Mohawk and took some prisoners.
After War Years
After the war, he and Joseph BrantJoseph Brant
Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. He was perhaps the most well-known American Indian of his generation...
met with Frederick Haldimand
Frederick Haldimand
Sir Frederick Haldimand, KB was a military officer best known for his service in the British Army in North America during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War...
to discuss the loss of their land in New York. Haldimand promised to resettle the Mohawks near the Bay of Quinte
Bay of Quinte
The Bay of Quinte is a long, narrow bay shaped like the letter "Z" on the northern shore of Lake Ontario in the province of Ontario, Canada. It is just west of the head of the Saint Lawrence River that drains the Great Lakes into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence...
, on the north east shore of Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...
, in present day Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Brant decided that he preferred to settle on the Grand River
Grand River (Ontario)
The Grand River is a large river in southwestern Ontario, Canada. From its source, it flows south through Grand Valley, Fergus, Elora, Waterloo, Kitchener, Cambridge, Paris, Brantford, Caledonia, and Cayuga before emptying into the north shore of Lake Erie south of Dunnville at Port Maitland...
. Brant and Johnson ridiculed Deseronto's decision to stay at the Bay of Quinte. Haldimand purchased and granted the Mohawks a tract 12 by 13 miles (20.9 km) on the Bay of Quinte. About 200 Mohawks settled with him at what is now called the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, Ontario
Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, Ontario
Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory is an 73 km² Mohawk First Nations reserve on the Bay of Quinte in southeastern Ontario, Canada, east of Belleville and immediately to the west of Deseronto...
. The Mohawks of the Lower Castle primarily settled at the Bay of Quinte, while those of the Upper Castle settled on the Grand River. Deseronto was personally granted a lump sum payment of about eight hundred pounds for his losses, 3000 acres (12.1 km²) of land, and an annual pension of forty five pounds.
In 1797, Deseronto and Joseph Brant
Joseph Brant
Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. He was perhaps the most well-known American Indian of his generation...
went to New York where they, in exchange for a small sum, they agreed to extinguish Mohawk land claims within New York.
He died January 7, 1811 at the Mohawk settlement on the Bay of Quinte in Upper Canada
Upper Canada
The Province of Upper Canada was a political division in British Canada established in 1791 by the British Empire to govern the central third of the lands in British North America and to accommodate Loyalist refugees from the United States of America after the American Revolution...
.