A TROUBLED TRAIL The native American tribesmen called the common web of paths by which they travel north and south along the eastern edge of the North American Continent - the Iroquois Trail. They did so because the northerly tribe dominated much of the area.. The route was bit inland from the Atlantic Ocean because that enabled them to avoid the rigors of traveling through swamp land areas such as “The Great Dismal” on the Virginia-Carolina border. It afforded them more ready access to wild game – much more plentiful and varied - on which they depended to sustain life along the way. Then, too, they made use of a natural highway of sort provided by the gentle contours of the Shenandoah Valley through of Virginia.
The Iroquois tribes of the north were, in the early days, the strongest and made many trips southward in winter- especially in the Fall of each year to trade – the trail was generally considered to be “theirs.” Only later, in historical times, did the Cherokee from the Scioto River area of Ohio, pose any real threat to the Iroquois' supposed ownership.
What we say about any highway system, of course, to a large extent what we are asked. It become rather plain right away that the qualities of comfort and ease are not paramount in our thinking. Such trails were, to put it mildly, universally poor in and we are unlikely to called “roads” - certainly not “highways” or “turnpikes. They were simply trails in a primitive sense.
The Valley of Virginia, often depicted as a paradise strip between two long ranges of mountains – those toward the east curiously blue in color much of the time. Tribal differences among many Indian families of North American Indian seemed to have a special knack for hating each other, reflected, it then appears,in clan and family disagreements among others. No one tribe seemed confident to take the Valley, for instance, as their own and hold it.. They were not as numerous as we find in Hollywood's versions. They were unorganized wanders, in some cases. They lacked political sense, it is said - which I, sometimes, think may have been a special blessing in many ways. Shawnee, Mingo, Cherokee, Catawba, and and others can be identified along the edges of the trail connecting north to south.
The major cross road for the Iroquois Trail came east-west from a few mile from Richmond, Va. to the Beverley's Mill area in Augusta. It was called “Three Chopt Road” and a fragment of it is still known by that name in Richmond, Va. It crossed the Blue Ridge through Wood's Gap - “headin' for Kentuk”.It was so-called because it 's meanderings were identified by three ax chop on trees along the way. At one time it had another name - “Rouge's Road” because of the frequency of trail-way-men in ambush.
In 1722 Governor Spotswood of Virginia and Governor Burnett of New York set forth a treaty with the northern tribes which forbade them the use of any trials east of the Blue Ridge. In effect they were told: “You've got your own road – use it” They were required to stay with it down to Bent Mountain or Fancy Gap when they could cross the Blue Ridge to trade with the Ocaneechee Tribes in the Carolina.
Isn't it odd that we are still having troubles with the use and mis-use of that same Valley trail now called “Interstate 81” in A.D.2006?
What could we expect?
Andrew McCaskey amccsr@adelphia.net 9-27-06 [c-595wds]
