September features Native American-themed programs at Delaware museums

The museums of the state of Delaware will explore the First State’s rich Native American heritage with a series of nine programs that will take place throughout the month of September.

According to Nena Todd, site supervisor for the state’s downtown Dover museums, September is a time for Native American people to return to their homelands.

Traditionally, the coming of cooler weather provided a signal for native peoples to transition from their summer hunting and fishing grounds to more secure winter lodging. This tradition of seasonal travel continues in today’s Native American communities with September serving as a time when families come together and communities celebrate their heritage.

One of Delaware’s most well-known Native-American celebrations is the annual Nanticoke Indian Powwow that will take place this year Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 8 and 9.

Museum programs during September include the Sept. 1 First Saturday program, The First People of the First State: A Celebration of Heritage, which welcomes the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware as they celebrate Mother Earth and their culture. Activities include a presentation by Dick ”Quiet Thunder” Gilbert, former chief of the Nanticoke Lenni Lenape Tribe of New Jersey, with his extensive collection of tools and artifacts; Elected Chief Dennis Coker with information about the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware; demonstrations of beadwork; crafts; children’s activities; a display of Native American artifacts from the state’s collections; a display on the Delaware Airpark archaeological project and the Lenape community; and demonstrations of the atlatl, a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in spear-throwing. Events take place at the Old State House, 25 The Green, Dover. The program runs from noon to 4 p.m.; the museum is open 9 a.m.to 4:30 p.m.

Also at the Old State House is Tools of Our Ancestors, offered from 3 to 4 p.m., Thursdays, Sept. 6, 13, 20 and 27. This interactive, after-school program examines tool manufacturing, and the tools and methods of hunting utilized by native people of Delaware more than 10,000 years ago. Program is geared to children ages 6-14 but open to all.

At 1 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 22, in “The Test of Time: The Relationship Between the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware and the Swedish Royal Family,” Elected Chief Dennis Coker of the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware will discuss the rekindled relationship with the Swedish government after a 300-year lapse and the advancements made by both communities. His presentation occurs at the Old State House.

A Native American carving demonstration by Chet Peden (Wolf Walker), chief, Appalachian Cherokee, Delaware region, will take place at 2 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 22, at the  Zwaanendael Museum, 102 Kings Highway, Lewes. Museum is open 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Call 302-645-1148.

At 1 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 29, activities return to the Old State House with First Peoples of the First State, a program based on the research of archaeologist Cara Blume, which explores Delaware’s Native American communities of the past and present.