While the recent Middle School excavation found evidence of an Indian tribe, the existence of Lenape Indians in the Nazareth area is well-known and documented. Nazareth history teacher and regular Express-Times contributor James Wright has an article today in the paper on the Lenape Indians, first inhabitants of the Nazareth area (read it here).
Wright's article compares the Lenape to the Iroquois of New York and the Susquehannock of central Pennsylvania.
He describes the Lenape as a loose confederation of tribes that wisely selected the location for their villages based on water, winter warmth, and eventually agriculture.
The Lenni Lenape means the "real" or "original" people according to Northampton Heritage (page 13) and were essentially a peaceful tribe, especially by comparison to the Iriquois, with whom they are said to have traveled from Asia across North America until reaching their ultimate destination on the east coast.
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