the Delaware Water Gap were the Munsee or people from Minisink the stony place Those south of the Raritan were called the Unami or the downriver people Further south along the Atlantic Coast and Delaware Bay were the Unalachtigo or people near the ocean The Delaware River connected all three groups The Lenape built dugout canoes from the trunks of tulip and elm trees for travel and trade Some were large enough to carry 20 people and were used in the bays and along the Atlantic Coast There were also many woodland pathways that crisscrossed the for est floor and connected the villages Some main trails like the Minisink Trail led from the mountains down to the shore where the Lenape would gather each summer to collect clams oysters and scallops Then they made beads and wampum from the shells 4
Lenape houses were round or oblong made of sapling poles and covered with bark and woven mats There was a smoke hole left in the top and the door faced east to greet the rising sun Everyone worked hard Men and older boys did the hunting fishing and heavy work Women and children tended gardens gathered wild berries and nuts and prepared the food and clothing 5
The Lenape were a peaceful nation When disputes broke out between other East Coast tribes the Lenape were called in to settle the matter All Lenape people had a right to speak and each tribe had a wise leader called a sachem 6
Starting in 1620 Europeans came and settled on Lenape land often without permission They brought diseases like measles smallpox and mumps which decimated many Lenape people because they had no natural immunity Most of the Lenape had disappeared by 1735 But they left behind many names as a remind er of their long existence In their language Hoboken means tobacco pipe Absecon means place of the white swan Watchung means hilly place Manasquan means place to gather grass and Allamuchy means place of the cocoons Yet there are descendants of the Lenape still living in New Jersey today Just as the Lenape of old they are determined to pass on their respect and love of the land We can learn much from their wise council 7
