The Remember the Removal (RTR) Committee hosted a 5K Run/Walk in partnership with the Allegany Community Center on Saturday, September 1, 2024. The 5K was part of the multiple activities hosted by the RTR committee for the 60th commemoration of the removal.
This was an event for our community to come together in a spirit of reflection and remembrance as we honor our past and claim the future. Many families and decsendants of those removed participated and received a complimentary cooling towel with a design specific to the main event on September 28th.
The RTR Commitee would like to thank the President’s Office for the donations of water and door prizes. The Seneca Nation Marshals guided traffic, patrolled with bikes and maintained the safety of all runners.
The cooling towel was design by Red House descendant Tami Watt, great grandaughter of the Kinzua era president George Heron. Tami’s design was inspired by the stories and pasttimes of Onoville. She had many family members that participated in the daily dance shows held at OI-HES-TAH or “The Stopping Place.” The Onoville Indian Stockade was a staple in the Onoville community. After meeting with the elders on the committee and reading “Along the Ohi:yo’ – A Look at Old Town/Onoville, she was inspired by a photo in the book featuring her husbands grandparents, Paul and Maime Jones leading social dances.
According to the book, the Onoville Indian Stockade or OI-HES-THA opened in the 1950’s. Admission was $2 and entire families performed social dances all weekend. Inside the stockade was the “cook shack,” with its local chefs, Coleman John and Happy Halliday.
Join the RTR Committee on September 28th at the Steamburg Community Center starting at 9am for registration and giveaways. A wreath ceremony will take place the Onoville Marina. The walk will take place around North Loop in the Steamburg Community. Visual displays of old communities will be on display. Markers of relocated families will be put up around South Loop and North Loop. A lunch and short program will follow.
Buses will be available to transport to the Onoville Marina. Participants are encouraged to drive their personal vehicles as well. A parking slip will be required entire the marina for free. Please see a volunteer for a pass.
Photos by Seneca Media. Map by GIS. Flyer by Newsletter.
