Places: Mohawk Chapel, Brantford, Ontario

Beaver pelts weren't the only source of contention in North America.  Both England and France felt they had a monopoly on the souls of the Native people in their respective territories.  Catholic and Protestant missionaries operated among the tribes with equal zeal.   Native leaders held their own views about which side was more beneficial to their people and weren't shy about asking rulers to intervene when necessary.

The three Mohawk Sachems who visited Queen Anne in 1710 included Teyoninhokarawan, who asked the Queen to send Anglican missionaries to the Mohawk.  The Queen obliged, and also present the Mohawk with a silver communion service.  Many Mohawk from New York became staunch Anglicans, foremost among them the Brant family.  Joseph Brant and his sister Molly donated funds for a church to be built at Canajoharie, in New York, on land donated by Sir William Johnson.  That church still stands.  When the Mohawk were driven from their ancestral lands during the American Revolution, particularly the Sullivan Expedition of 1779-80, they sought refuge along the Grand River in Ontario. 

The Mohawk Chapel was constructed in 1785.  Originally, the entrance to the chapel faced east, to the river where a canoe landing area made for easy entrance.  Leading people of the tribe including Joseph and John Brant and John Norton attended services here.  Joseph Brant died in 1807 and was originally buried near his home in Burlington, Ontario.  His remains were transferred to the chapel and buried in a tomb along with the remains of his son John, who died in 1832.  Stained glass windows in the chapel commemorate episodes in Mohawk history, including Norton's translation of the Gospel of John.  Queen Anne's silver communion service is kept at the chapel, which is one of two official Chapels Royal in Canada.  The other, Christ Church Chapel Royal, near Deseronto, is also associated with the Mohawk people.