The Seneca Nation presently holds three state reservations in western New York near the city of Buffalo: the Allegany Reservation, the Cattaraugus Reservation, and the Oil Springs Reservation. Another group in western New York, the Tonawanda Band of Seneca, has a reservation near Akron, New York. Seneca also live on the Six Nations Reserve along with other Haudenosaunee near Brantford, Ontario. Other Haudenosaunee had settled on the Little Sandusky River in 1817—18; they later ceded their lands for a reservation in the Indian Territory in 1831. They now are the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe and hold trust lands in Ottawa County, Oklahoma.
The Seneca have been in the news in recent years because of questions concerning their lands in western New York. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, many tribal members opposed the flooding of lands on their Allegany Reservation for a dam. They lost their case, however, and the Army Corps of Engineers completed the Kinzua Dam in 1965, flooding approximately 10,500 acres. Some of these lands were sacred to tribal members. Cornplanter’s original gravesite was flooded.
In 1985, some Seneca tried to block construction of a part of Route 17, called the Southern Tier Expressway, crossing the Allegany Reservation. They claimed that tribal leaders had no right to sell the land to the state in 1976. But a New York State supreme court justice issued an order barring the group from further interference with construction, and the road was completed.
There also has been the issue of the Salamanca lease. The city of Salamanca is built on Indian reservation land. In 1892, white citizens signed lease agreements lasting 99 years with the Seneca Nation. Some of the leases cost only $1.00 a year for a piece of property. In 1991, the leases finally expired. They have been renegotiated for the next 40 years with much fairer terms for the Seneca people.
Another issue has been that of a land claim to 18 Niagara River islands, the largest of which is Grand Island, by the Tonawanda Band of Seneca. Their unsuccessful lawsuit, originally filed in 1993, alleged that New York State illegally obtained the land in 1815, purchasing it without federal consent. (A 1790 federal statute prohibits the purchase of land from Indian nations without the consent of Congress.)
Seneca ash-splint basket (modern)
The Seneca now operate a museum and tribal library on the Allegany Reservation as well as an indoor sports arena on Cattaraugus Territory available for competition, practice, or recreation. The Seneca Nation, after years of debate among its people and negotiations with New York State authorities, has recently turned to gaming as a tribal enterprise, signing a state compact in 2001 and launching casinos in both Niagara Falls and Salamanca. They are also planning a casino in Buffalo, despite opposition from some local groups who fear the social impact of gambling and the loss of other businesses.
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