Born: Unknown (circa 1670s), United States
Died: 23 December 1754
Country most active: United States
Also known as: Aliquippa
This biography, written by Amy-Jane Humphries, is shared with permission from Team Queens, an educational history blog run by a collective of historical scholars. All rights reserved; this material may not be republished without the author’s consent.
Alliquippa was a prominent leader of the Seneca nation for at least a decade before her death in December 1754. Her origins are obscure, and the stories of her life are contradictory, but it is thought she was born sometime between the late 1670s and early 1680s.
It is thought that both her father and partner also held prominent positions within the wider Iroquois confederacy of which the Seneca were part. Alliquippa’s place within an important lineage undoubtedly allowed her access to power and respect within her community.
By the late 1740s, she was already considered elderly by observers who visited Alliquippa and her people in Pennsylvania. Therefore, it could be that wisdom and experience played a part in Alliquippa’s rise to prominence. Her loyalty to and alliance with the British also helped.
In 1753, Alliquippa was visited by Lieutenant Colonel George Washington of the Colonial Army. He was returning from a meeting with the French who had holed up in the Ohio River Valley. Though he came with a formal request that they leave, the French had no intention of doing so.
Alliquippa famously rebuked Washington for not visiting her on the journey up to Fort Le Boeuf but he was soon forgiven when he presented her with gifts. The social misstep on Washington’s part did not damage the standing of the British with Alliquippa, however.
In 1754, Alliquippa travelled with some thirty families to Fort Necessity where it was hoped that they would safe. It was there, though, that the French and Indian War broke out. It was Washington’s only surrender in his military career and the Seneca were forced to evacuate.
Alliquippa and her people retreated to the safety of the Aughwick Valley where they were under English protection. It was there that she died that December at Fort Shirley. Her son, Kanuksusky, outlived her by just two years. He died of smallpox in November 1756.
Recommended Reading
Irene Carstairs, “Damn, Girl – Aliquippa,” accessed 24 July 2021 http://www.thathistorynerd.com/2017/11/damn-girl-aliquippa.html
R. Hilliard, “Queen Aliquippa; A history,” Milestones 21.3 (1996), accessed 24 July 2021 https://www.bcpahistory.org/beavercounty/BeaverCountyTopical/NativeAmerican/QueenAliquippMA96.html.
The following is republished from the National Park Service. This piece falls under under public domain, as copyright does not apply to “any work of the U.S. Government” where “a work prepared by an officer or employee of the U.S. Government as part of that person’s official duties” (See, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101, 105).
Queen Alliquippa was a prominent leader of the Seneca nation, likely born circa 1679. She enters the historical record when British and French colonists start writing about their journeys in the Ohio River Valley. By this time, she was considered to be “old” and was said to reign “with great authority.” She and her people inhabited villages located around the Forks of the Ohio (present day Pittsburgh, PA), and interacted favorably with several major British leaders during her lifetime.
Alliquippa was a strong British ally. During George Washington’s return to Virginia after his unsuccessful expedition in 1753 to diplomatically urge the French out of the Ohio River Valley, he met with the queen. He recorded, “I went up about 3 miles to the Mouth of Yaughyaughgane to visit Queen Alliquippa, who had express’d great Concern that we pass’d her in going to the [French] Fort. I made her a Present of a Match Coat; & a Bottle of rum, which was thought much the best Present of the two.”
In April 1754, after the fall of the British Fort Trent at the Forks of the Ohio and the establishment of the French Fort Duquesne in its place, Alliquippa and her people moved.
Alliquippa and Washington’s paths crossed again in 1754. In early June, Washington was visited by a number of his American Indian allies. Alliquippa had brought her entire village to the Great Meadows. The warriors were asked to stay and help fight the French, but all the American Indians left before the July 3 Battle of Fort Necessity. After the British defeat, Alliquippa and her people moved to a trading post, Augswick, in central Pennsylvania. She died sometime before December 23, 1754.
Queen Alliquippa was one of a few strong allies on the side of the British in the early stages of the French and Indian War. She exhibited powerful female leadership and exercised her authority in interactions with prominent male European leaders, including William Penn and George Washington.