Adam DJ Brett

Ph.D. in Religion from Syracuse University. Webmaster for the Doctrine of Discovery educational resource.

1 minute read

⤓ Download a transcript of the Episode as a PDF // → Subscribe

Introduction

Travis Bowman and Matthew Zembo join Lisa Moore to expose how military strategy, political will, and intentional misinformation during the Revolutionary era were used to dispossess the Haudenosaunee. Far from defensive reprisals, the 1779 campaigns and related actions show a coordinated effort to destroy crops, erase settlements, and manufacture legal and military pretexts to take land.

Key takeaways

  • Wartime violence was used opportunistically to remove Indigenous communities and secure land for settlement.
  • Reports and intelligence were manipulated to justify raids and scorched-earth tactics.
  • The destruction of food supplies and villages was aimed at eroding tribal cohesion and forcing dispossession.

Resources

  • Bowman, Travis M. Clearing Iroquoia: New York’s Land Grab in the 1779 Campaigns of the American Revolution. With Matthew A. Zembo and Michael Galban, Lexington Books/Fortress Academic, 2025.

Credits

  • Music: Onondaga Social Dance songs performed by Orris Edwards and Regis Cook
  • Producers: Jordan Loewen-Colón; Adam DJ Brett; Crow Richardson
  • Show notes: Adam DJ Brett

Citation

Lisa Moore, “S06E04 - Washington Said Burn The Corn and New Yorkers Brought Surveyors” Mapping the Doctrine of Discovery (Podcast), 2026-01-29. https://podcast.doctrineofdiscovery.org/season6/episode-04/.

Download citation formats:

SUGGESTED CITATION

Adam DJ Brett, "S06E04: Washington Said Burn The Corn and New Yorkers Brought Surveyors," Doctrine of Discovery Project (14 February 2026), https://doctrineofdiscovery.org/blog/link/s05e04/.

Download citation formats:

Donate today!

Open Access educational resources cost money to produce. Please join the growing number of people supporting The Doctrine of Discovery so we can sustain this work. Please give today.