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Reclaiming Ohi:yo'- Restoring the Altered Landscape of the Beautiful River Ohi:yo' Restoration and Resiliency Projects Members of the Seneca Nation's Watershed Resources Working Group are involved in various restoration and resiliency projects for our Ohi:yo'. The Seneca Nation's Fish and Wildlife Department in particular engages in projects related to building artificial habitat, repopulating our river's Walleye population, and building trenches to help land locked fish. Fighting for the Water: Fracking Wastewater in Ohi:yo' In 2016 the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) began deliberating a 1,000-barrel/day of unconventional gas drilling wastewater (Frack Wastewater) disposal facility in Potter County proposed by Epiphany Allegheny LLC. In response to the news of these fracking plans, our Seneca people again fought for our people, our communities, and our Ohi:yo'.

"Kinzua Dam Upheld: Suggested Alternative is Declared Economically Impractical", The New York Times, Mar. 26, 1960

Maurice K. Goddard, the Secretary to the Department of Waters of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1955-1979), writes into The New York Times supporting the construction of Kinzua Dam. In October of 1957 Congress asks the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to contract an independent civilian engineering firm to give a second opinion on whether Arthur E. Morgan's Conewango Plan was indeed the better alternative. Goddard's comments on the private engineering firm fail to mention that this firm was not neutral: some of the firm's leaders were former U.S.A.C.E. employees and had incentive not to give a proper third-party assessment. Moreover, our ancesters were opposed to the dam's placement because there was an alternative that had considerably more benefits, including the alleged primary purpore of flood control, that would still allow the U.S. to uphold the treaty and for us to retain our land and way of life. Maurice K. Goddard, the Secretary to the Department of Waters of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1955-1979), writes into The New York Times supporting the construction of Kinzua Dam. In October of 1957 Congress asks the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to contract an independent civilian engineering firm to give a second opinion on whether Arthur E. Morgan's Conewango Plan was indeed the better alternative. Goddard's comments on the private engineering firm fail to mention that this firm was not neutral: some of the firm's leaders were former U.S.A.C.E. employees and had incentive not to give a proper third-party assessment. Moreover, our ancesters were opposed to the dam's placement because there was an alternative that had considerably more benefits, including the alleged primary purpore of flood control, that would still allow the U.S. to uphold the treaty and for us to retain our land and way of life.

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1. The President John F. Kennedy Letter (pg 1 of 2) Seneca Nation Presidents', beginning with Cornelius Seneca (1956-1958), began writing to public officials in Pennsylvania, New York, and even the President of the United States in an effort to stop the construction of Kinzua Dam. In a letter from U.S. President John F. Kennedy, Kennedy declares that he will not halt the construction of Kinzua Dam. President Kennedy's reasoning, like many who supported building the dam, argued that national U.S. interests superceded that of our Seneca people. President Kennedy's remarks and stance on the issue were not unusual for this time period.
2. Walter Taylor, George Heron Walter Taylor, the national representative of the American Indian Program of the American Friends Service Committee, a Society of Friends organization, is speaking with George Heron (SNI President 1958-1960, 1962-1964) in front of two of the proposed resettlement area maps for displaced Seneca families (Jimerson Town and Steamburg) that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers created. Between May 1961 and January of 1962 the Seneca Nation of Indians and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers negotiated the individual landowner boundary lines of the "take" areas on the Army Corps proposed resettlement maps.
3. "Critic at Large: The Senecas Being Forced From Their Lands are Bitter with Good Cause"
4. President Cornelius Seneca Public Outreach Letter (pg 1 of 4)
5. "Second Look at Kinzua" Editorial
6. "Kinzua Dam Upheld: Suggested Alternative is Declared Economically Impractical", The New York Times, Mar. 26, 1960 Maurice K. Goddard, the Secretary to the Department of Waters of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1955-1979), writes into The New York Times supporting the construction of Kinzua Dam. In October of 1957 Congress asks the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to contract an independent civilian engineering firm to give a second opinion on whether Arthur E. Morgan's Conewango Plan was indeed the better alternative. Goddard's comments on the private engineering firm fail to mention that this firm was not neutral: some of the firm's leaders were former U.S.A.C.E. employees and had incentive not to give a proper third-party assessment. Moreover, our ancesters were opposed to the dam's placement because there was an alternative that had considerably more benefits, including the alleged primary purpore of flood control, that would still allow the U.S. to uphold the treaty and for us to retain our land and way of life. Maurice K. Goddard, the Secretary to the Department of Waters of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1955-1979), writes into The New York Times supporting the construction of Kinzua Dam. In October of 1957 Congress asks the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to contract an independent civilian engineering firm to give a second opinion on whether Arthur E. Morgan's Conewango Plan was indeed the better alternative. Goddard's comments on the private engineering firm fail to mention that this firm was not neutral: some of the firm's leaders were former U.S.A.C.E. employees and had incentive not to give a proper third-party assessment. Moreover, our ancesters were opposed to the dam's placement because there was an alternative that had considerably more benefits, including the alleged primary purpore of flood control, that would still allow the U.S. to uphold the treaty and for us to retain our land and way of life.
7. Kinzua Project of the Indian Comittee Report, 1963 The Indian Committee of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of Friends (a Society of Friends organization) worked with the Seneca Nation to prevent the construction of the dam. In December of 1962 when it became clear the U.S. court system would not help us, we began focusing our efforts on relocating our communities that would be inundated as part of the Allegany Reservoir. We quickly needed to prepare new houses, churches, schools- entire communities for our people who were being relocated.
8. Robert Haines Reply, Kinzua Project of the Indian Committee, 1963 Throughout the Kinzua Era, and evidenced in many of our other exhibit materials, responses to previously published statements were a popular form of communicating where one stood on the issue.This letter that would have been given out at the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of Friends shows our relationship with the Quakers. The referenced Kinzua Planning Newsletter was created in conjunction with the Society of Friends and the Seneca Nation to keep our Seneca communities but also the American public updated on what was happening.