Oskanondonha

Who was Oskanondonha?

Oskanondonha was an Oneida "pine tree chief". He was born an Iroquoian-speaking Susquehannock but was adopted into the Oneida people. Alternate spellings for his name include Skenando, Skenandoa, Skonondon, and Shenandoah. When he accepted Christianity, he was baptized as John.

During the colonial years, he supported the English against the French in the Seven Years War. Later, during the American Revolutionary War, he supported the colonials and led a force of 250 Oneida and Tuscarora warriors in western New York in their support. A longtime friend of the minister Samuel Kirkland, a founder of Hamilton College, his request to be buried next to him was granted. In the procession at the funeral of Skenando were Oneida, students and officers from Hamilton College, Mrs. Kirkland and her family, and many citizens of Clinton, New York.