Unity Island
Coordinates: 42°55′40″N 78°54′16″W / 42.927771°N 78.904495°W Unity Island is an approximately 160-acre (0.65 km2) island separating the Niagara River and the Black Rock Canal, located within the city limits of Buffalo, New York. The historic island is home to two public parks and a water treatment facility.
The island's original name in the Seneca language is Deyowenoguhdoh. From about the time of the War of 1812 to July 2015, the island was also known by the English name Squaw Island. In June 2015, after being petitioned by Jodi Lynn Maracle, a Mohawk resident of Buffalo, and members of the Seneca Nation of New York, who considered the name to be racist and derogatory toward Native American women, the members of the Buffalo Common Council voted unanimously to change the island's name to Unity Island. New signs reflecting the name change were installed on the island beginning in October 2015. Although the new name was formally adopted by the city, the official name of the island as declared by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) remains Squaw Island; a proposal to the BGN to change the official name was submitted in September 2016. The proposal is under evaluation and open for public comment as of late 2016.
From their arrival in 1780, Unity Island was known to the native Seneca Indians as Deyowenoguhdoh (pronounced "de-dyo-we-no-guh-do"), meaning "divided island", so-called for a small marshy creek (then known as "Smuggler's Run") that once ran through the property. The name Squaw Island first appeared prior to the War of 1812; however, its origin is unknown. Not until the early 19th century did the island leave the hands of the Seneca Nation. Philip Kenjockety, one of the last of the Neutral Nation and namesake of Scajaquada Creek, owned a corn field on the island at the time of his death in 1808. Kenjockety is known to have traveled the creek that once divided the island by canoe during his travels to and from Canada.
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