Water

The Lenape were the OG caretakers of the Delaware River

This Indigenous People’s Day, we reflect on the people who cared for this land and waterways before us.

The Lenni Lenape are the indigenous people whose territory included our present-day New Jersey & eastern PA along the Delaware River watershed, and New York City.

Photo: Wikipedia

In honor of the people who came before us – and took care of the Delaware River Watershed long before we existed – here are connections between the Lenape and “great river.”

Interesting tidbits about the Delaware River & Leni Lenape People

  1. Lenapewihittuk was the original name of Delaware River by the Lenape, meaning the largest river in this part of the country. Lenape Sippu is translated to the “river of the Lenape people.”
  2. Many of Lenape villages were located along banks and tributaries of the Delaware.
  3. There were likely 10,000 to 12,000 Lenape people in the Delaware Valley in 30 to 40 communities during William Penn’s time.
  4. Travel by water: The Lenni Lenape tribe used bark and dugout canoes to travel on the Delaware River, according to Laura Redish and Orrin Lewis, as stated on the Native Languages of the Americas.
  5. Park history: The Lenape people met with William Penn along the Delaware River at the present-day Penn Treaty Park to negotiate a peace treaty… allegedly, with a questionable accuracy asterisk.
  6. OG locavore farming: The Lenni Lenape people were farming people, with women harvesting corn, squash, and beans, and men handling hunting and fishing (often shad) in the rivers, according to Redish & Lewis.
  7. The Lenape had a matrilineal clan system, which means their bloodline and social positions were traced from the mother’s side.
  8. The Lenape tribe and treaty signers (environmental groups, churches, historical societies, and individuals) renew a Treaty of Renewed Brotherhood every four years to acknowledge the Lenape as the original caretakers of their homeland and to assist the Lenape people, language, and way of life. There is a coinciding three-week canoe group along the Delaware River, known as the Rising Nation River Journey. The original treaty was signed in 2002.

9. The Lenape Woods Nature Preserve, a homage to the tribe, is located in Atlantic Highlands with 51 acres of woodland and wetlands.

10. Today, many descendants of the Lenape people live in Oklahoma and Ontario.

Julie Hancher

Julie Hancher is Editor-in-Chief of Green Philly, sharing her expertise of all things sustainable in the city of brotherly love. She enjoys long walks in the park with local beer and greening her travels, cooking & cat, Sir Floofus Drake.

Recent Posts

1000+ trees planted, end of free A/C program, canvassing to save SEPTA, & more

Catch up on the latest in sustainability news: Trash cleanup group starts a new video…

1 day ago

The City’s Tree Plan calls for significantly increasing our leafy coverage. So, why are our large trees continued to be chopped down?

How one neighbor’s loss reflects a citywide dilemma.  “SAVE MY TREE!” That’s what Nicole Fakhoury…

4 days ago

Navy Yard is nation’s largest LEED neighborhood, Rare ‘Franklin’ trees & more

Catch up on this week’s sustainability news:  Philadelphia Navy Yard is now the largest LEED…

1 week ago

For these Philadelphians, nature is a pathway to healing from gun violence

For some survivors, hiking and gardens offer deeper healing than pharmaceuticals. This story is the…

1 week ago

How Councilmember Jamie Gauthier addresses inequity and sustainability

Councilmember Jamie Gauthier is Green Philly’s latest Civic Catalyst. Read how Gauthier uses her role…

1 week ago

Where Are The Trees We Were Promised?

Two years into the City’s first-ever Tree Plan, our leafy coverage has remained static. What…

2 weeks ago