| Vol. 1 No. 3 |
|
March 1997 |
The Lenape Indians were resourceful in their supplying of food to the
tribe and families. Not only were they hunters and gatherers of the forest's
bounty but they were also agriculturists. The Lenape cultivated corn, squash,
pumpkin and beans. Obviously, since there was no refrigeration, there were a couple of
ways they could preserve the food for winter consumption, drying and smoking.
The beans, squash, pumpkin and corn they grew were dried in the sun (much
as our sundried tomatoes are today) and the fruits, berries and nuts they
gathered from the woods were also dried and later used in family meals.
This was women's work, they were the gatherers, the men were the hunters
and fisherman. Think of the plentiful store of fruits, vegetables, meats, shellfish, fish, nuts, etc. that they had as a selection. The only difference from todays food is they had to do all the work of slaughtering, preparing, preserving and storing the food themselves. Think of the foods they had to select from the fields, woods, bays and
ocean; deer, bear, rabbit, squirrel, turkey, duck, fish, clams, whelk,
oysters, scallops, turtle, geese, walnuts, butter nuts, hickory nuts, chestnuts,
acorns, beach plums, cranberries, huckleberries, blackberries, strawberries,
raspberries, mushrooms, etc. and all of it was free. What gourmet meals they had, yet this was the everyday menu! Some foods
were eaten raw and some were cooked over an open fire. Meat was secured
to a pointed stick and roasted over the flames. The Indians made clay pots
to simmer and boil the meats and vegetables. The pots, the local Indians
made, were unique because of their round bottoms. They were not hung over
the fire but set in the sand and a fire was built about them. Fragments
of these pots can still be found today at local Indian sites. They made breads and cakes from the ground dried corn they harvested.
They flavored the cakes with wild berries and used marrow and bear grease
as the butter. Sometimes they added chopped nuts. Today we buy cranberry-nut
bread in mixes and think Pillsbury invented something new. The Indians most common meal was a mush called suppan. This was cornmeal
boiled in water and served in wooden bowls and eaten from spoons made of
shells. For winter use the vegetables had to be prepared so they could be stored
without spoilage. The meats, fish and shellfish were hung over slow-burning,
smoldering fires so the smoke would penetrate, dry and preserve the meats,
much as we eat smoked fish or hams today. However, the difference being
that their meats were actually smoked and mainly we eat smoke flavored
meats and fish. Squash and pumpkins were cut into strips and hung up on
branches or strips of wood to dry in the sun. Roots and tubers, such as
ground nut, artichokes, Indian turnip and the like were gathered in the
fall and buried in the ground for later use. Corn and nuts were toasted
in the ashes of a dying fire and stored in pots for winter meals. With the many fresh foods available; the many methods of preparing, preserving, storing and cooking these foods; the Indians had a plentiful and healthful diet. Unless the hunting was bad, the seasons harvest was poor and/or the winter was long and severe, the tribe survived quite well. However, if the hunting was bad and the summers harvest failed because of drought, etc., the tribe spent a long, hungry winter. There were no stores to get groceries! Sharing and going hungry were the only alternatives. (To be continued:
This will be a new column of newspaper articles, diaries, personal remembrances, etc. of early happenings in Egg Harbor Township. If you wish to contribute to this column contact or write:
At the Methodist Church at English's Creek, during the time of service,
the congregation was startled by something coming through the window, scattering
the glass, and striking against the opposite wall. Most of the congregation
supposed it a stone that came through the window, but upon going to examine
it they found it was a quail which had flown through - probably it was
chased by a hawk and flew into the sanctuary to escape from it's enemy
where it met it's death coming into contact with the wall.
The ladies in this vicinity have heretofore found considerable difficulty
in supplying themselves with bonnets and other articles in the millinery
line. Many of them heretofore been obliged to make a journey to Philadelphia
for that express purpose being unable to suit themselves at home. By referring
to our advertising columns they will perceive that Miss S. Wheaton
has a new stock of the latest style of goods on hand, and is ready to fill
any orders in her line. She is acknowledged by all to be the most tasty
milliner in the county, and we have no doubt but that the ladies could
suit themselves by leaving their orders with her. (Note: Miss Sarah Wheaton had a millinery shop on Steelmanville
Road at the present site of Beaver Lakes across from Harbor Pine Golf Course.) |
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