Camilla Townsend, a Board of Governors Distinguished Professor of History at Rutgers, along with Nicky Kay Michael, the interim president of Bacone College in Muskogee, Oklahoma, recently published the book On the Turtle's Back: Stories the Lenape Told Their Grandchildren.
On the Turtle’s Back is the first collection of Lenape folklore, originally compiled by anthropologist M. R. Harrington over a century ago but never published until now. In it, the Delaware share their cherished tales about the world’s creation, epic heroes, and ordinary human foibles. It features stories told to Harrington by two Lenape couples, Julius and Minnie Fouts and Charles and Susan Elkhair, who sought to officially record their legends before their language and cultural traditions died out. More recent interviews with Lenape elders are also included, as their reflections on hearing these stories as children speak to the status of the tribe and its culture today. Together, they welcome you into their rich and wondrous imaginative world.
The book will be presented at the Zimmerli Museum at 6 P.M. on Thursday, October 19. Delaware co-author Nicky Michael will also be present.
To find more information on the book, Please click on the link below:
