Sketches of Ancient History of the Six Nations

David Cusick (1825)

First published in 1825, this work represents one of the earliest attempts to reconstruct pre-contact Iroquois history. Compiled by David Cusick, a Tuscarora historian, the book attempts to relate events as far back as 1000 BC based on the oral tradition of the Iroquois.

While Cusick himself admits that much of the work is fabulous, mixing accounts of wars and leaders with stories of giants, floating heads, and poisonous blue otters, it is inaccurate to classify the work as wholly mythological. For example, the estimated dates he offers for the southern migration of the Tuscarora (AD 1) and the Iroquois proper becoming independent nations (AD 500) compare well with dates suggested by modern archaeology. Thus, while it would be unreasonable to assume that the traditions recorded in this work are precise, it is clear that they likely contain a kernel of ancestral memory of actual prehistoric events. As it is, the work remains partly fact, partly fable, and wholly invaluable to a study of Iroquois history and folklore.