AKWESASNE — The eventual resolution of a federal land-claim lawsuit filed by the St. Regis Mohawk tribe could solve a smaller property dispute, as well.

A 240-acre tract along Route 37 near the Akwesasne Mohawk Casino was recently occupied by a group of traditional Mohawks and reclaimed as sovereign Indian land.

But a downstate man who holds the deed to the land is upset that the densely wooded parcel was snatched from him, even though he has tried to sell it without success for years.

PURCHASED IN 1981

In a statement released through his attorney, Brian Stewart of Malone, Horst Wuersching says he bought the land in 1981.

According to records in the Franklin County Clerk’s Office dating back to 1873, a majority of the combined acreage was sold by Joseph Lamping to Alpha Burget in 1855, then to Earl W. Scripter in 1909, to Mary Alice Crowley in 1912, to Lenore C. Jekyll in 1957 and to Herman J. and Mary H. Coughlin in 1967.

Robina and Robert Garrity of Massachusetts bought the land in 1973 and sold it to Wuersching, who lives in Mount Vernon, on Dec. 14, 1981, for $17,500.

POSTED FOR SALE

When he couldn’t find a buyer, Wuersching said, he posted a hand-lettered ‘For Sale By Owner’ sign on the property last December.

A group of traditional Mohawks known as the Men’s Council, led by Kanaratiio (Roger Jock), were apparently offended by Wuersching’s sign, calling it a threat and hostile move in a Feb. 12 article published in the Indian Time newspaper.

The group took action, claiming not only the 240 acres deeded to Wuersching but about 800 more acres.

The Men’s Council has offered all the property to other Mohawks as free land, posting signs announcing that 1,250 acres of property had been reclaimed for Akwesasne.

An Iroquois flag is also displayed there.