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June 6, 2009

Mohawks take occupation of small tract

By DENISE RAYMO

AKWESASNE — The eventual resolution of a federal land-claim lawsuit filed by the St. Regis Mohawk tribe could solve a smaller property dispute, as well.

A 240-acre tract along Route 37 near the Akwesasne Mohawk Casino was recently occupied by a group of traditional Mohawks and reclaimed as sovereign Indian land.

But a downstate man who holds the deed to the land is upset that the densely wooded parcel was snatched from him, even though he has tried to sell it without success for years.



PURCHASED IN 1981

In a statement released through his attorney, Brian Stewart of Malone, Horst Wuersching says he bought the land in 1981.

According to records in the Franklin County Clerk’s Office dating back to 1873, a majority of the combined acreage was sold by Joseph Lamping to Alpha Burget in 1855, then to Earl W. Scripter in 1909, to Mary Alice Crowley in 1912, to Lenore C. Jekyll in 1957 and to Herman J. and Mary H. Coughlin in 1967.

Robina and Robert Garrity of Massachusetts bought the land in 1973 and sold it to Wuersching, who lives in Mount Vernon, on Dec. 14, 1981, for $17,500.



POSTED FOR SALE

When he couldn’t find a buyer, Wuersching said, he posted a hand-lettered ‘For Sale By Owner’ sign on the property last December.

A group of traditional Mohawks known as the Men’s Council, led by Kanaratiio (Roger Jock), were apparently offended by Wuersching’s sign, calling it a threat and hostile move in a Feb. 12 article published in the Indian Time newspaper.

The group took action, claiming not only the 240 acres deeded to Wuersching but about 800 more acres.

The Men’s Council has offered all the property to other Mohawks as free land, posting signs announcing that 1,250 acres of property had been reclaimed for Akwesasne.

An Iroquois flag is also displayed there.

A large swath of trees has been cut down and removed, and a dirt path was created several hundred yards into the parcel, which is south of Route 37 next to the Hogansburg-Akwesasne Fire Department station.

A high pile of surface material was deposited in the middle of the forest path.



COMBINING SUITS

In the news release, Stewart states that Syracuse attorney Judith Sayles, who represents Franklin County’s interests in the long-standing federal land-claims lawsuit, has filed a motion asking the court to take jurisdiction of the Wuersching-deeded land as part of that larger lawsuit.

Apparently, no decision on that motion has been made.



PROPOSAL REJECTED

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the state and the Mohawks in October 2005 that would have given the tribe about one-third of the land mass of Fort Covington, two islands in the St. Lawrence River, cheap electrical power, $100 million in cash and the chance to purchase property adjacent to the reservation from willing parties.

In exchange, the Mohawks would have dropped their land-claim lawsuits and a challenge made to the relicensing of the New York Power Authority before the State Public Service Commission.

Within that deal, Franklin County would have received payment of the roughly $4 million that it has paid in taxes on the disputed lands since the Mohawk land-claims lawsuit was filed more than 25 years ago.

The county would have also been paid for any future parcels taken off the tax rolls, if they were purchased by an Indian, since they are tax-exempt.

Franklin County opposed the pact, saying the proposed compensation was not enough and that the deal did not address the tax impact on school districts.

The other parties named in the federal lawsuit, including the Town of Fort Covington, the Town of Bombay, St. Lawrence County, the Town of Massena and the Town of Brasher, also rejected the proposal.

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