History Lenape Indians -- New Jersey & Pennsylvania

During the 16^th century, explorers from Europe found a rich new continent, which had plentiful supplies of fish, lumber, furs and other goods.  The Italian explorer, Giovanni da Verrazano first met the Lenape Indians off the coast of Sandy Hook, New Jersey in 1524.

1600s map showing location of Indian tribes in NJ and PA:

Verrazano was greeted by local Lenape who approached his ship by canoe. He reported: “There appeared a new land which had never been seen before by any man, either ancient or modern.  At first it appeared to be rather low-lying; having approached to within a quarter of a league, we realized that it was inhabited, for huge fires had been built on the seashore."

Verrazano’s description of the Lenape:

“The older man had on his naked body a stag skin, skillfully worked ... with various embroideries; the head was bare, the hair tied back with various bands, and around the neck hung a wide chain decorated with many different colored stones.  These people are the most beautiful and have the most civil customs that we have found on this voyage.  They are taller than we are; they are a bronze color, some tending more toward whiteness, others to a tawny color; the face is clear-cut; the hair is long and black, and they take great pains to decorate it; the eyes are black and alert, and their manner is sweet and gentle.  They are very generous and give away all they have.”

Soon after the voyage of Verrazano, more and more European fishermen who searched for schools of cod fish, whalers, and slavers interacted with the native people along the Atlantic coast, changing the ancient life of the Lenape and other native groups forever.

By the time Henry Hudson and his crew aboard the Half Moon ship entered the New York Bay in September 1609, the native people of the area no longer trusted the Europeans and occasional problems and fighting soon ensued.

European Colonization:  First came the Swedes, who established the colony of “New Sweden” in 1638 at Fort Christina, now Wilmington, Delaware), and included parts of the present-day states of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.  Then came the Dutch and lastly the English and the Quakers. 

The original inhabitants, the Lenni Lenape or Delaware Indians, were not one single tribe, but made up of three groups. In the northern areas of their territory were the Munsee, “the people of the stoney country.” In the middle, or central area was the Unami, or the “people down river.”  South of the Unami were the Unalactgio, or the “people near the ocean,” who were also known as the Nanticokes.

The first attacks were from diseases such as Smallpox which the Europeans brought.  The next attacks were from the settlers.  Less hunters stalked the game, and walked the forest paths.  Ancient village sites were abandoned.  Slowly the Lenape lost their ancient homeland, their world forever changed.