Moratoc
tribe
CÌŒwe·Ê”n (Hello)
The Moratoc Indians, originally from present-day Roanoke River, made their exodus from their homelands in 1748 to Bladen/Robeson, following King Tom Blount's sons, William and James Blount. Old Highway 87 from Roanoke to Fayetteville, North Carolina was an original Tuskarora trading path that enters into Robeson County, North Carolina, where many Indian families still currently reside. During the many wars (Tuscarora War, French & Indian War, Revolutionary War and the Battle of 1812), our warriors helped instill pride for our elders to pass on to future generations and the sovereignty our people still hold today.
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Our Mission
The Tuskarora Nation of Moratoc Indians is committed to protecting our hereditary birthright, preserving and promoting our ancestor's culture, language, traditions & values, improving the quality of life for our people and upcoming generations.
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In the 1700s after the Tuscarora War, Tom Blount/Blunt, King Sachem of the North Carolina Tuskaroras from the Northern faction, desired that the members of his Nation live peacefully and securely without the risks of attacks from rival Indian tribes of the Carolinas and encroachments by English colonists. The Tuskarora Nation, the predominant warriors of their tribes and villages in eastern North Carolina, were generally aligned into two factions. Few of the southern or lower towns and villages of the Mangoak Indians followed King Hancock’s Tuscarora. The Northern faction of Tuskarora, led by King Tom Blount, resided mostly to the north of Pamlico River, Tar River and along the Roanoke River, also known as the Moratoc River, named from the Moratoc/Moratock/Moratuk Indians meaning “mean\bad waters” first mentioned by Ralph Lane in his quest to the “New World” and listed on various maps.
“United people let not evil find lodging in your minds. For the Great Spirit has spoken and the cause of peace shall not become old.”
