While the exact date of his birth remains a point of debate, John Abeel III was born to a Seneca woman and a Dutch trader, trapper, farmer and scout in Canawaugus on the Genesee River in present day New York. His Native American name “Cornplanter” or “Kiontwogy,” translates to “By What One Plants.” While his actual birth date varies wildly depending on the source, by most accounts, Cornplanter was born in 1752.

Cornplanter’s father, Johannes “John” Abeel II was born in 1722 and was the son of Albany’s second Mayor John Abeel I. He met his first wife, Princess Alquipiso Abeel of the Wolf Clan, lived among the Seneca tribe and had Corplanter’s older brother, Handsome Lake. (Sganyodaiyo), a prophet and leader in his own right as well as another brother, “De-ne-oh-ah-te” or “The Light.” She passed in 1746.

Abeel II, who had been welcomed by the Iroquois, then met Gah hon no neh and worked as a gunsmith. Sometimes after Cornplanter was born, Abeel II returned to his family near Albany some 200 miles away. He would marry Mary Abeel (Knouts) and add him to his family. Some records indicate that Abeel II, whose surname was also recorded as “John O'Bail” and “John O'Beale,” had as many as 11 children.

Young Cornplanter’s mother, “Gah-hon-no-neh” (She Who Goes to the River) was a member of the Seneca Wolf Clan and described as a “princess” or “noblewoman of the nation.” She was also the sister of Guyasuta. Cornplanter was raised by his mother, as well as the Wolf Clan at large.

Because of his father’s Dutch heritage, Cornplanter had a lighter complexion than most of the other Seneca. From “The Hatchet and the Plow: the Life and Times of Chief Cornplanter, by William W. Betts, Jr.:” “Although his skin was uncommonly light for an Indian, his eyes were those of an Indian. For they were dark, intensely dark, even black and, at the same time, strangely luminous. They were deep, absorbing eyes and a great melancholy abided in them. No hint of laughter dwelt there.” Despite that, Cornplanter was said to never learned to speak English well.

When the Revolutionary War broke out in 1775, both the colonials and British urged the Seneca to remain neutral; and they did for a while. Cornplanter reportedly said, “War is war. Death is death. A fight is a hard business.”

About two years later, the British approached the Seneca about abandoning their neutrality. Initially apprehensive, he honored the decision of other Seneca Indians and joined the battle. During the Siege at Fort Stanwix in New York — as a newly-minted War Chief —

Cornplanter was among the leaders of 800 Indigenous warriors representing the Seneca, Mohawk, Cayuga and Onondaga tribes in the battle.

His involvement was almost immediately significant, beginning with the Siege of Fort Stanwix and Battle of Oriskany. He and others ambushed the Patriot militia there and 300 more in 1778 at the Battle of Wyoming in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

In the Battle of Wyoming, noncombatants were spared from attack. In November 1778, he led the Cherry Valley Massacre were noncombatants were either killed or captured.

A year later, and a decade before he would become President, General George Washington ordered Major General John Sullivan to descend upon the Iroquois. Cornplanter and others were able to fight off Sullivan’s army of 4,500 troops and their “scorched earth” tactics long enough for refugees to escape to Fort Niagara.

Despite the setback, Cornplanter, the Seneca and Mohawk War Chief Joseph Brant continued their attacks.

In 1780, Brant and Cornplanter led an attack on the village of Canojaharie and Fort Plain on the Mohawk River in New York. During the raid, a reportedly tall and thin, 50-something year-old man with a weather-beaten face, surprised his Seneca captors by speaking their language. They took him to Cornplanter, who recognized his father. The War Chief invited Abeel, who was with his wife and family, to join the fight, or be offered an escort to safety. Cornplanter’s father chose safety for his family and was accompanied away from the battle. It’s not known if they ever saw each other again.

At the conclusion of the war, Cornplanter led negotiations with the new United States and was a signatory of the Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1784), the Treaty of Canandaigua (1794), and others. During negotiations, he helped ensure Seneca neutrality during the Northwest Indian War.

Beginning in 1786 he helped convince the Seneca to remain neutral during the Northwest Indian War. By invitation in late October 1790, Cornplanter, along with the Chiefs and Warriors of the five Nations traveled to Philadelphia and then Washington to see Pennsylvania Gov. Thomas Mifflin and now-President Washington to “lay their complaints before the legislature” and protect Seneca land.

During one of the subsequent trips, Cornplanter, now accompanied by his half brother Handsome Lake, were impressed by the Quakers and their early straight-edge lifestyle.

It was around this time in 1796 that Washington gifted Cornplanter with a tract of land described as between 750-1,500 acres along the Allegheny River in Warren County. Washington grew to respect Cornplanter, and the land was to be a permanent “thank you”

for his help with successful peace negotiations. Within two years, some 400 Seneca lived on the land. The land was prone to flooding, and ultimately, that’s what caused its demise.

Cornplanter, and Handsome Lake were strongly opposed to liquor, as were the Quakers. The now retired War Chief invited the Quakers to the Cornplanter Tract and together shared their individual experiences and talents.

With wars now behind them, some of the Seneca became complacent and others became lazy drunks. Angered, Cornplanter once again turned against the Americans, especially whites. During a ride on a steamboat, he complained about their work ethic and lack of muscles. Some say he became a religious zealot, returned to more traditional ways, burned his military uniform, and destroyed weapons and medals alike.

Cornplanter married twice. His first wife, Ya-ie-wa-noh Cornplanter belonged to the Snipe clan. They had seven or eight children, once again depending on the source. One of Cornplanter’s sons had an intellectual disability and was maligned as “The Idiot.” Ya-ie-wa-noh died in 1829. His second wife was Kekoinous Abeel and little is known of her.

By the War of 1812, Cornplanter, along with his son, Henry Abeel, as well as others, had become a supporter of the Americans. His relatives Chainbreaker and Guyasuta also had a lasting impact in Western Pennsylvania.

In 1821, officials in Warren County tried to get Cornplanter to pay taxes on the land; but his argument that it was “granted” to him by the federal government was eventually approved.

Cornplanter died in 1836 at his home in Warren County. He reportedly didn’t want a grave marker; however, the State of Pennsylvania installed a monument. It is “believed to be the first monument erected in honor of a Native American in the United States.”

Cornplanter was hailed as a wise statesman and “dauntless warrior” by the Honorable James Ross Snowden of Philadelphia in a dedicatory address.

In 1965, construction of the Kinzua Dam and Allegheny Reservoir were completed. Much of The Tract was submerged and Cornplanter’s grave relocated to higher ground at the Riverview-Corydon Cemetery in Elk Township, near the New York line.

For more than 90 years, relatives, including the Cornplanter Descendants Association have met the first Saturday in August for a reunion in either New York or what remains of the Cornplanter Tract.