Trees are taken for granted by most people. A few learn how to identify the different species; some even can tell one type of oak from another; others, using wood as a fuel, may learn that one kind of tree gives off more heat than another. The yearly color display of the fall and the miracle of spring growth signal that trees are most certainly alive, but only the true woodworker understands the deeper meanings of what most humans casually observe. For the traditional Haudenosaunee the tree is not only alive, but has a spirit which must be thanked and reckoned with as part of the Creator’s world.

Anyone who cuts down a tree for wood to carve soon discovers that the tree does not give up its life for such purposes unless the would-be woodworker has mastered an intricate body of learning passed down from generation to generation. First, the exact nature of each kind of wood, such as the softness of basswood or the strength under stress of hickory must be known in terms of what the final product is to be. Second, the proper tree has to be located in the woods, and after so many years of lumbering, finding the right tree can be most difficult. Third, the time of cutting is crucial, for the life blood of the tree runs early in the spring, and if the wood is to be properly seasoned, the less sap the better; therefore, much cutting is done in mid or late winter when the snow is deep. On the other hand, if bark or elm or hickory is what is needed, then it is best acquired after the sap has begun its spring flow. Some Iroquois woodworkers even note the moon’s phases, and they cut only at full moon time. Fourth, seasoning the wood is an art. Some leave the logs outside in the woods; others store the logs in dry attics or barns. As the wood’s life dries out, it tends to check or split if not seasoned carefully and properly. A patient, planned life is thus fundamental for a woodworker. A storage place filled with needed seasoned woods is every woodcarver’s dream. To make such a dream a reality demands steady planning, dedication, and effort, months and years before a draw knife or chisel is ever used.

The woodworker’s tools are often passed down through the generations. The deceptively simple jackknife cuts beautifully if its honed edge is in the hands of a master, but it seems clumsy when used by the uninitiated. Old tools seem to help the user follow the traditional ways, to remember how the grain flows and moves around knots, and to let the spirit of the wood escape into the form it seeks. Even after the tools have liberated the form, there is still the final decision of how to finish the piece with sandpaper, or perhaps to rub it with bone or stone in the older fashion. There still remains the choice to leave the piece as is, smooth it with beeswax, or turn to modern polyurethane. The traditional ways are somehow never completely forgotten.

Easier ways do not always work. Haudenosaunee woodcarvers have produced containers, utensils, tools, sports equipment, religious objects and furniture for generations. Those objects essential to religious practices such as false face masks, waterdrums, and rattles continue to be made and used. Other objects such as cradleboards, ladles for stirring corn soup, condolence canes or snowsnakes are made for home use or might be sold to collectors or museums. Ever since the 1600s, objects such as bowls, spoons, or war clubs were being replaced by their modern equivalents, but today some woodcarvers produce these objects for museums and collectors. For many years, Iroquois woodcarvers made, for sale to Iroquois and non-Haudenosaunee, ax and hammer handles, oars, paddles, boats, drover canes, and chairs. A few still produce these items. Lacrosse sticks are a must because Iroquois still play this national sport, but they too are being replaced by plastic and aluminum. A few use wood to create sculptures.

Woodworkers also work with bark. Elm, hickory, oak, and birch can all be used, but for the Iroquois elm bark is most commonly used. Basswood and elm provide the inner bark strips needed for lacing the bark together. All types of vessels including trays, bowls, ladles, quivers, and a host of storage containers can be made from bark insuring a durable container. Well into the 1800s, bark was used for containers in cornbread making or maple syrup collecting. Rattles used for ceremonies and social dances are also of bark. By the 20^th century, however, few worked with bark, making objects mainly for museums or collectors.

When sap rises in the tree the bark can be easily cut and slipped off the trunk or limb of the tree. At that moment it is still very pliable and can be fashioned into a form. Usually, the outer part of the bark is first smoothed by scraping it with a knife. It is then folded into a container and a splint of wood encircles the rim of the container to help it keep its shape. This wood splint is laced to the bark with strips made from the inner bark of the elm tree.

While Haudenosaunee continue too work in wood, many non-ritual items such as lacrosse sticks, sleds, and snowshoes are in strong competition with modern products. Good, seasoned hard wood is not a by-product of the modern life-style anywhere. Whittling and draw knife skills require a patience also not too common any longer. The elders have these habits and talents, and the future of expert woodworking depends upon how willing the younger people are to learn from those who have carried the traditions this far.