THE DELAWARE

THE DELAWARE'S EARLY HISTORY OF SEVERAL BANDS IN THE EASTERN U.S. WAS THAT THEY ORIGINATED IN THE VALLEY OF THE DELAWARE RIVER. FEW WERE UNITED POLITICALLY BUT THEY ALL SHARED TRADITIONS AND STORYTELLING. ONE STORY WAS HOW THE CREATOR MADE THE EARTH ON THE BACK OF A GIANT TURTLE. MOTHER CORN WAS THOUGHT TO BE WOMAN LIKE SPIRIT. BUT THEN MOTHER CORN VANISHED. ONE PERSON SAID WE MUST FIND SOMEONE TO COAX MOTHER CORN TO RETURN TO EARTH SO WE WON'T STARVE TO DEATH. THE PEOPLE HAD A FAMINE FOR A YEAR. THEN TWO BOYS LEARNED OF THE TROUBLE AND THEY HAD SPIRITUAL POWER. AS THE PEOPLE WERE SITTING IN A RING AT NIGHT THE BOYS DEPARTED AND WENT TO A PLACE ABOVE THE EARTH WHERE THEY MADE A BURNT OFFERING OUT OF A MUSSEL SHELL AS MOTHER CORN TO COME BACK TO EARTH. MOTHER CORN WAS MOVED BY THEIR SACRIFICE AND APPEARED. SHE SAID SHE'D HONOR THEIR REQUEST. THE BOYS TOLD THEIR TRIBE OF THIS GOOD NEWS. THEREAFTER BECAUSE OF THE SPIRITUAL POWER OF THE TWO BOYS, MOTHER CORN REMAINS WITH THE PEOPLE. THE DELAWARE WOMEN TEND THE FIELDS, HARVEST, AND HUSK THE CORN AND STORE THE CORN.




THEY WERE THE FIRST NATIVE AMERICANS TO MEAT THE ANGLOS ALONG THE ATLANTIC COAST IN THE 16OO'S. HENRY HUDSON SAILED INTO NEW YORK HARBOR IN 1609 AND 12,000 DELAWARE WERE THERE. DUTCH AND SWEDISH IMMIGRANTS WERE PEACEFULLY SETTLED IN WHAT IS NOW SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY AND THE STATE OF DELAWARE. THE NATIVE AMERICANS TRADED BEAVER PELTS TO EUROPEANS FOR POTS, KETTLES, AND TOOLS, GUNS, CLOTH AND GLASS BEADS. THE ANGLOS TRADED ALCOHOL WHICH GREATLY HARMED THE DELAWARE AND OTHER NATIVES! THE DELAWARE AND SWEDES PEACEFULLY SHARED THEIR KNOWLEDGE OF SKILLS IN HUNTING, FARMING, AND HANDICRAFTS. THE SWEDES TAUGHT THEN HOW TO WEAVE SPLINT BASKETS FROM STRIPS OF HARDWOOD. THEW DELAWARE SHOWED THEM HOW TO GROW MUCH CORN AND TO FISH . THE DELAWARE BECAME ADDICTED TO LIQUOR. THEY HUNTED ANIMALS PRIMARILY FOR THEIR FURS IN ORDER TO GET TRADE GOODS. IT RESULTED IN THE LOSS OF THEIR ANCESTRAL LANDS, DISEASES DEVASTED POPULATIONS AND CHANGED THEIR LIVES FOREVER. FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS BANDS OF THE NORTH AND SOUTH DELAWARE HAD PROSPERED IN THEIR ABUNDANT LANDS.




AFTER 10 - 12 YEARS THEY EXHAUSTED THE LAND AROUND THEIR VILLAGE, SO THEY HAD TO RELOCATE THEIR VILLAGE. THEY GENERALLY TREATED EACH OTHER KINDLY. FOOD WAS SHARED . THEY HAD STRONG RELATIONS BETWEEN PARENTS AND CHILDREN AND THEIR CLAN. CHILDREN WERE RAISED AND EDUCATED BY THE MOM'S BROTHERS. THE FATHER LOOKED AFTER HIS SISTER'S CHILDREN VS. HIS OWN. WHEN A MAN MARRIED HE MOVED INTO THE HOME OF HIS WIFE'S PARENTS AND HIS CHILDREN BELONGED TO THE MOTHER'S CLAN.




THE DELAWARE BUILT OVAL SHAPED ARCHED FRAMES FROM GREEN HICKORY SAPLING INTO THE GROUND. THEY WERE LASHED TOGETHER TO FORM ARCHES. HORIZONTAL POLES WERE TIED ACROSS THE FRAMEWORK. IT WAS COVERED WITH LARGE SHEETS OF BARK 6'LONG. THEY HAD A 1 FOOT WIDE HOLE FOR SMOKE. DURING SUMMER THEY MADE TEMPERARY CAMPS OR SMALL DOME SHAPED WIKIUPS COVERED WITH MATS WOVEN FROM REEDS. WOVEN MATS COVERED THEIR FLOORS THEY BUILT SWEAT LODGES LARGE ENOUGH FOR FOUR MEN OR WOMEN AND SEALED IT WITH CLAY.




THE WOMEN TENDED COOKING FIRES , TANNED HIDES, AND WOVE BASKETS AND HOED THE CORNFIELDS. THE MEN MADE DUGOUT CANOES, FASHIONED MORTARS AND PESTLES FOR GRINDING CORN AND CRAFTED BOWS AND ARROWS. EACH BAND HAD 2 LEADERS, A CLAN CHIEF AND A WAR CHIEF. THE WAR CHIEF ACHIEVED HIS POSITION AND AND SKILL IN BATTLE. A PROVEN WAR CHIEF COULD GATHER YOUNG WARRIORS AND GO ON A RAID WITHOUT APPROVAL OF A CLAN CHIEF. BY THE LAST DECADE OF THE 17TH CENTURY CHIEFS ACHIEVED GREATER POWER OVER THE EUROPEANS ON THEIR TERRITORY. MAJOR DECISIONS WERE MADE BY THE GENERAL COUNCIL 200 PEOPLE. A CHIEF COULD DECIDE HIS SUCCESSOR. IT FOLLOWED HIS MOTHER'S SIDE OF HIS FAMILY, BUT SOMETIMES HE COULD CHOOSE FROM HIS FATHER'S SIDE. CHIEFS WERE CHOSEN FOR THEIR GOOD CONDUCT, PUBLIC SPEAKING SKILLS, HONESTY, AND WISDOM . THEY WERE RELIGIOUS SPEAKERS AS WELL .




THE DELAWARE BELIEVED IN ONE CREATOR WHO HAD MADE THE WORLD AND ALL THE CREATURES. THEY THOUGHT THE UNIVERSE WAS COMPARED OF 12 LAYERS WITH THE EARTH AT THE BOTTOM. AND THE HOME OF THE CREATOR WAS AT THE TOP. LIFE IN THE HEAVENLY REALM WAS WITHOUT OUT PAIN, SORROW, DISEASE, AND WORK. THEIR WERE 12 REALMS AND THE # 12 WAS IMPORTANT T O THEM AS THEY THOUGHT IT TOOK 12 DAYS FOR THE SOUL OF THE DEAD TO REACH THE CREATOR. IT TOOK 12 DAYS TO COMPLETE THEIR MOST IMPORTANT RITUAL - THE BIG HOUSE CEREMONY. THEY BELIEVED THAT BOTH ANIMATE AND INANIMATE SPIRITS COULD BE IN THE 12TH REALM.







THEY LIVED IN SMALL GROUPS IN DELAWARE AND PART OF PENNSYLVANIA, NEW YORK, AND NEW JERSEY. THEY REFERRED TO THEMSELVES AS 'LENAPE' MEANING ORIGINAL PEOPLE. BEFORE EUROPEANS CAME THE MEN HUNTED GAME AND THE WOMEN TENDED THEIR FIELDS OF CORN, BEANS, AND SQUASH. THE DELAWARE WERE HONORED AS THE GRANDFATHERS.

THEY HAD GOOD SPIRITS AS MANETUWAK FOR THE PEOPLE. THE MESINGU, OR LIVING SOLID FACE, WAS THE GUARDIAN SPIRIT OF THE DEER. JUST MENTIONING HIS NAME TO THE CHILDREN MADE THEM IMMEDIATELY BEHAVE. HIS FACE WAS HALF BLACK AND HALF RED. HE HELPED HUNTERS LOCATE GAME.

THE DELAWARE STRUGGLED AGAINST BECOMING CHRISTIAN. IN THE LATE 1600'S THE SWEDES SPREAD TB TO THE TRIBES. THE BIG HOUSE CEREMONY WAS HELD AFTER THE CROPS WERE HARVESTED. THERE WERE FEASTS, DANCING, PRAYING, AND STORYTELLING. THEY PRAYED FOR BOUNTIFUL HUNTING. THEY HONOR THE SPIRIT THAT PROTECTS THERE HUNTING. THEY CARVE HIS FACE IN THE LIVING TREES. AND THEY MAKE MASKS THAT WERE WORN AT CEREMONIES AS WELL AS AMULETS ON NECKLACES. THEIR RITUALS INCLUDED DANCING, DUMMING WITH A WATER DRUM AND VISITING AS WELL AS SINGING. THE WATER DRUM WAS MADE FROM HOLLOWING OUT A LOG, POURING WATER WATER INTO IT, AND STRETCHING A DEER HIDE OVER THE TOP. THEY MADE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS SUCH AS RATTLES MADE OF GOURDS, BARKS, HORNS, AND TURTLE SHELLS. THEY HAD VARIOUS DANCES, SUCH AS CORN AND BEAN DANCE, RACOON AND DUCK DANCE AND ALLIGATOR DANCE.

THROUGHOUT THE YEARS THE MISSIONARIES TRANSLATED MANY OF THEIR HYMNS INTO LENAPE LANGUAGE. THEY STILL HAVE POWWOWS THAT ARE EVENTS WEAR THEY WEAR THEIR REGALIA AND RECALL THEIR HISTORY OF PEOPLE. WHEN THEY HAD ILLNESS THEY RELIED ON THEIR SHAMANS, EITHER MEN OR WOMEN. THEY KNEW HERBAL MEDICINE AND THE SPEAK TO THE SPIRITS. THEY KNEW MANY CURES AND HOW TO HEAL. MEDICINE BUNDLES HAD DRIED ROOTS, FEATHERS, STONES, AND OTHER SACRED OBJECTS TO WARD OFF BAD LUCK.

AFTER 1650'S THE DUTCH AND OTHER ANGLOS HAD THE DELAWARE ADOPT THEIR WAYS. THEY LIVED IN CABINS AND RAISED CATTLE. EVERY YEAR THE DELAWARE HOST A POWWOW NEAR THEIR RESERVATION IN OKLAHOMA TO HONOR ANCESTORS.

RAYMOND BIAL

RAYMOND BIAL