Susquehannock Stewardship of the Susquehanna River Valley

How today’s Bay farmers can honor traditional indigenous land stewardship methods

Painting by Carol Oldenburg depicting a native land settlement, inspired by archaeological excavations by the PA Historical Museum Commission in 1970.

Ancient origins and importance of the river valley today

The Susquehanna River Basin is home to 3.9 million people, including 30,000+ farms, and provides drinking water to millions while contributing about half of the Chesapeake Bay’s freshwater. Geologists indicate the Susquehanna River as one of the oldest river systems in the world, dating its origin around 340 million years ago; preceding the formation of the Appalachian Mountains. After millennia of mountain building, erosion, glacial activity, and the influx of humans, today, the Susquehanna River is vital to the Chesapeake Bay. The importance of this waterway for the trade of fur, food and commerce is as significant today as it has been historically for indigenous peoples.

Indigenous people understood the importance of sustainability and stewardship, and occupied the Susquehanna River Valley as early as 16,000 years ago during the “Paleo-Indian” era. They were followed by the “Archaic Peoples” around 9,000 years ago, and then the “Woodland Peoples” roughly 3,000 years ago. The Susquehannock people, an Iroquoian group, later became prominent in the region.

Map of the “Susquehannock” territory circa 1600-1700 AD.

One of the most significant archaeological sites of a more recent tribe settlement is located at Quaker Hills Quarry of Conestoga, PA in Lancaster County. This site was home to the Shenks Ferry culture, a late-woodland indigenous village that lived in these lands from 1300 AD until 1550 AD. Upon the arrival of the northern PA Iroquoian-speaking Susquehannocks who largely controlled the fur trade routes along the Susquehanna River at the time of European contact, they integrated with the Shenks Ferry culture and use of the landscape including growing native North American corn, beans, squashes, and relied heavily on the river’s fish, riparian wildlife, and upland woodlands.

The Susquehannocks, eventually known as the “Conestoga Indians”, were a relatively peaceful peoples, however, engagements in warfare during the Beaver Wars, the introduction of European diseases, and hostility from European settlers meant the extinction of the historical Susquehannocks in 1763.

Today, our limited knowledge of these peoples comes from archaeological artifacts and European written accounts. Europeans have since introduced monocultural agriculture, new annual crops, domesticated livestock, cleared woodlands for timber, and hunted megafauna and predatory wildlife to extinction.

We can learn from these ancient peoples about how to steward our lands sustainably by using ancient techniques of land management. Join us as we explore the ways the Indigenous peoples of these lands utilized the watershed in sustainable ways!

Farming the Forest & Reliance on the Rivers Resources

The Susquehannock peoples were highly in-tune with the River and its natural resources, including the Susquehanna’s abundant fishery. Indigenous peoples relied on species such as the American eel, capturing during their upstream migration from the Bay using stone eel weirs. Some weirs are still intact within the river system today and can be seen during low water conditions such as this intact weir located in Danville, PA. Photo credit: Luke Wagner

The Indigenous peoples of the Susquehanna River Valley had a deeply intertwined relationship with the land and the river systems that shaped their way of life. Their practices weren’t simply about survival; they were a holistic way of managing the environment in a manner that was inherently sustainable.

The eastern deciduous forest landscape was a mosaic of diverse habitats that were skillfully managed through a combination of hunting, gathering, and early agriculture. The landscape of woodlands, grasslands, and wetlands provided a variety of resources essential to their diet and culture:

• Woodlands provided game like deer, elk, and smaller mammals, and materials necessary for building shelter, crafting tools, and creating art.
• Grasslands hosted herds of grazing animals like wild turkey, quail, and the now-extinct passenger pigeon, which was once abundant in the area.
• Wetlands, rich in biodiversity, yielded beavers, waterfowl, and many other animals hunted for food and materials.
• The River and its tributaries were central to the Susquehannocks’ way of life. American shad, Atlantic salmon, and American eels were especially important protein sources. The Susquehanna River was not only a means of transport for trade and communication, but also a key source of fish, freshwater mollusks, and aquatic plants such as naiads (aquatic grasses) which sustained both the human population and riverine ecosystems.
• Foraging in these varied ecosystems brought a wealth of wild edibles, including seeds, nuts, berries, mushrooms, and medicinal herbs.

The Conestoga Village further exemplifies their adaptive strategies. Located in present-day Lancaster County, PA, it was a hub of agricultural innovation. The people employed cultural burning, or slash-and-burn, methods to manage the forests and encourage the growth of key species. These controlled burns created oak-savannahs, habitats that supported chestnuts, acorns, hickories, and various other trees that provided food and shelter for both humans and wildlife.

In addition to hunting and gathering, the farming and forestry techniques used by the Susquehannocks were advanced. They practiced coppice farming, where specific groves of trees were periodically cut down, allowing them to regenerate and provide sustainable resources for basketry, housing, and fiber. In doing so, the forests were not cleared but rather managed to ensure their continual vitality and productivity.

Indigenous peoples used an early method of intercropping by planting corn, beans and squash or pumpkins together in mounds, commonly referred to as the “Three Sisters”. Corn provided support for beans, beans provided nitrogen through nitrogen-fixing rhizobia bacteria that live on the roots, and squash provided ground cover to suppress weeds and retain soil moisture. By by Lopez-Ridaura, S., Barba-Escoto, L., Reyna-Ramirez, C. A., Sum, C., Palacios-Rojas, N., & Gerard, B. is used under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).

The introduction of the Three Sisters method also shaped their agricultural practices. This system, which dates back more than 2,300 years, involves planting corn, beans, and squash together to enhance soil fertility and promote mutual growth. Corn acts as a natural trellis for the beans, while squash shades the soil and prevents weeds. This ecological understanding of plant relationships is a powerful example of sustainable agriculture that could be beneficial in modern farming practices.

Tobacco was also grown for ceremonial and practical purposes, while sunflowers served as a source of edible seeds and oil. Jerusalem artichokes were cultivated for their edible tubers, which were a valuable food source. These crops demonstrate the diversity and ingenuity of Indigenous agricultural methods, which were rooted in a deep understanding of local ecosystems.

European Influences & modern Agriculture

19th-century engraving depicting the Jamestown settlers from England being greeted by the native peoples of the Chesapeake Bay.

With the arrival of Europeans in the 17th century, Indigenous knowledge and practices began to erode with the introduction of more exploitative agricultural techniques. Monoculture farming fundamentally changed the landscape, replacing diverse systems with large-scale farming practices based on a few staple crops, like corn, wheat, and later soy.

The shift to monocultures also resulted in the introduction of invasive species, displacing native plants and animals. The forests were decimated by blight, while native wildlife, including bison, elk, and wild turkeys, were largely replaced by domestic livestock like cattle and sheep.

The disruption of these natural systems contributed to soil degradation, erosion, and the pollution of waterways. European diseases disrupted the passing down of essential land stewardship knowledge. These factors combined to drastically alter the agricultural landscape, leading to the modern, industrial agricultural systems we see today.

Incorporating Traditional Practices On Modern-Day Agricultural Lands

Silvopasture may be utilized as a method of replicating the ancient practice of opening up the woods for megafaunal grazing and hunting (today, megafauna would be replaced with domesticated livestock managed rotationally and through forest management using forest thinning techniques and/or prescribed fire for grassland restoration. Photo credit: modernfarmer.com

While the impacts of European colonization cannot be undone, there is a growing recognition of the benefits of integrating traditional Indigenous techniques into modern farming practices, to help farmers adapt to contemporary challenges like climate change, soil depletion, and habitat loss. Integrating traditional Indigenous agricultural practices can also open up new markets and revenue streams.

Some ways modern agriculture can incorporate Indigenous practices include:

• Planting riparian buffers and upland reforestation
• Restoring and protect wetlands and floodplains
• Proper manure management and fencing out livestock from streams
• Practicing rotational grazing and provide shade for livestock
• Reviving the cultivation of native edibles and tree crops
• Utilizing coppice farming of native woody plants
• Using techniques like companion planting, alley cropping, and cover crops
• Supporting native pollinators and natural pest-control by planting pollinator habitats
• Maintaining areas of wildlife habitat in unproductive sections of farmland

Alley Cropping may be used as a modern technique to introduce “companion planting” similar to the 3-sisters method using today’s cash crops. Incorporating trees between crops provides several environmental benefits, as well as a diversified income stream for the farm by utilizing nuts, fruits, and wood products produced by the trees. Photo credit: Ethan Strickler/Swallowtail Farm

By adopting these practices, modern farmers can enhance sustainability and ecological health, honor the legacy of Indigenous stewardship, and build a more resilient farming future in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.

The Susquehanna River Valley is a unique, ancient landscape with a rich cultural and agricultural history. Photo credit: Nicholas A. Tonelli

Incorporating Indigenous land stewardship methods into contemporary agricultural practices offers a powerful way to address modern environmental challenges. By focusing on sustainable farming methods like cover crops, no-till farming, and rotational grazing, we can help restore the health of the Chesapeake Bay while improving climate resilience.

As Aldo Leopold, a renowned ecologist, once said, “A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community.” Modern agriculture, much like Indigenous practices, must strive to honor the land, not exploit it. The restoration of traditional ecological practices represents not only a return to sustainability, but a way to honor the spiritual and cultural significance of this land, past and present.

Indigenous wisdom is traditionally passed down orally, and I encourage readers to engage with local Indigenous communities for deeper, firsthand knowledge. The tribes of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, including the Powhatan, Susquehannock, Lenape, and others, continue to be vital voices in this conversation.

For further understanding of your local indigenous tribe(s), you can connect with local Indigenous representatives or visit Native Land to learn more about the territories and peoples in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and beyond.

Learn More

Support the Alliance’s Efforts