Ohsweken () is a dispersed rural community located within the

Six Nations of the Grand River Six Nations (or Six Nations of the Grand River, french: Réserve des Six Nations, see, Ye:i’ Níónöëdzage:h) is demographically the largest First Nations reserve in Canada. As of the end of 2017, it has a total of 27,276 members, 12,848 of w ...

, in the

County of Brant The County of Brant (2021 population 39,474) is a single-tier municipality in the Canadian province of Ontario. Although it retains the word "county" in its name, the municipality is a single-tier municipal government and has no upper tier. The C ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada. Approximately 300 of the 2,700 homes on the reserve are in Ohsweken, and it is the site of the reserve governmental and administrative offices.

History

From approximately 1840 to 1865, the Six Nations Confederacy council met in a log building near Middleport, Ontario. In 1856, against protests from the Onondaga chiefs, a strong-willed superintendent from the

Indian Department The Indian Department was established in 1755 to oversee relations between the British Empire and the First Nations of North America. The imperial government ceded control of the Indian Department to the Province of Canada in 1860, thus setting ...

Jasper Tough Gilkison Jasper, an aggregate of microgranular quartz and/or cryptocrystalline chalcedony and other mineral phases,Kostov, R. I. 2010. Review on the mineralogical systematics of jasper and related rocks. – Archaeometry Workshop, 7, 3, 209-213PDF/ref> ...

, established a council building in what is present-day Ohsweken, about south-west of Middleport. Gilkison later retired in 1891 under pressure from Prime Minister Sir

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (January 10 or 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 to 1891. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, he had a political career that sp ...

for incompetence. Though the Onondaga chiefs argued that they should establish their own center of government, the village of Ohsweken quickly developed in the surrounding area.

Arts and culture

Six Nations Fall Fair

Six Nations Annual Fall Fair takes place often the first week of September and is one of the oldest Agricultural Fairs in Ontario. Celebrations include the Miss Six Nations pageant, a powwow, horse races, and a derby.

Bread and Cheese (Independence Day)

In appreciation of the Six Nations' support for Great Britain during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

and the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

began an annual tradition of giving blankets to their community. The custom ended with Victoria's death in 1901. In 1924, however, the council of the Six Nations decided to revive the practice, this time with gifts of bread and cheese, as a commemoration of the close ties between Six Nations and the British Crown. Every year, thousands of people stand in line to enter the

Gaylord Powless Gaylord Powless (1946–2001) was a Haudenosaunee lacrosse player from the Six Nations of the Grand River First Nation Indian reserve near Brantford, Ontario. His father Ross Powless, Ross was also a highly regarded player. In 2017, Powless was indu ...

Arena where they receive large squares of bread and cheese. The celebrations also include carnival rides and games, a parade from Chiefswood Park to the arena, and a street dance held by

CKRZ-FM CKRZ-FM is a radio station in Ohsweken, Ontario. Owned by the Southern Onkwehon:we Nishinabec Indigenous Communications Society (SONICS), the station airs a community radio format for the region's Six Nations and Mississauga First Nations. Hi ...

National Indigenous Peoples’ Day

The events take place at Chiefswood Park, celebrating National Indigenous Peoples’ Day and the summer

solstice A solstice is an event that occurs when the Sun appears to reach its most northerly or southerly excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around June 21 and December 21. In many countr ...

on June 21. June 21 is also the day of the Tom Longboat run. There are also festivities at Gage Park in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

Grand River Champion of Champions Pow Wow

This annual

Pow-wow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native American and First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an ...

, held since 1979, hosts over 400 dancers and drummers from across North America. It is held on the last weekend of July at Chiefswood Park. It features a variety of traditional Native dancing by different tribes, food, and crafts.

Attractions

Veterans' Park

This park is at the corner of Fourth Line Road and Chiefswood Road. It features The Six Nations-Mississauga War Memorial, which commemorates the 200 First Nations soldiers who were killed during World War II. The soldiers fought in Dieppe, France, and Hong Kong, and were part of the

Normandy Invasion Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norma ...

in 1944.

Gaylord Powless Arena

The Gaylord Powless Arena seats 648 with room for 200 standing. Originally constructed in 1972, it was renovated in 2005 and is regularly used for lacrosse, hockey and figure skating. On Bread and Cheese Day, the arena serves for distribution of large chunks of bread and cheese.

Speedway

Ohsweken Speedway The Ohsweken Speedway is a 3/8 mile Race track#Surfaces, dirt track in the village of Ohsweken, Ontario, Ohsweken, Ontario, Canada. Ohsweken’s weekly Friday night racing program runs from May to September each year, featuring 360 Sprint Cars, Cr ...

is a 3/8 mile dirt oval auto raceway located in Ohsweken.

Education

Six Nations Polytechnic Six Nations Polytechnic (SNP) is a Haudenosaunee-governed Indigenous institute on Six Nations of the Grand River First Nation. SNP is an Indigenous Institute, the third pillar of post-secondary education in Ontario, as recognized by the ''Indige ...

is a Six Nations of the Grand River First Nation community-controlled school.

Media

The town is serviced by two community newspapers, ''

Turtle Island News ''Turtle Island News'' is a weekly community newspaper, published in Ohsweken, Ontario, Canada. The ''Turtle Island News'' also covers First Nation and aboriginal issues across North America. The ''Turtle Island News'' has a circulation of 20,00 ...

'' and ''

Two Row Times The Two Row Times, an Onkwehon:we (Onkwehonwe) flagship publication of Garlow Media,Two Row Times Business Report (September 20, 2013) is a free weekly news publication based in Hagersville, Ontario, Canada, and focusing distribution on the Six Na ...

''. Both newspapers feature mostly local news but also include stories related to broader First Nations and Canadian issues.

, a community radio station, broadcasts a variety of programming including local news, music, language lessons and radio bingo.

Notable people

* Jay Silverheels * Gary Farmer *

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...

* Daniel David Moses *

Stan Jonathan Stanley Carl "Bulldog" Jonathan (born September 5, 1955) is a Canadian former ice hockey left winger, most notably for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League, for whom he played for parts of eight seasons. He featured in two Stanley Cup F ...

Brandon Montour Brandon Montour (born April 11, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Florida Panthers in the National Hockey League (NHL). Montour was selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the second round, 55th overall, of the 2014 NHL ...

* Craig Point

References

External links

* {{authority control Wikipedia articles needing clarification from August 2010 Communities in the County of Brant