Hidden Heritage

Alex Rodriguez-Gomez

This doll, made by Shelley Windamakwi DePaul and Valara Hartman, embodies a crucial stage of survival for the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania during the Eighteenth Century: hiding in plain sight. With a second hidden face stitched onto the back of the head, dolls like this one were gifted to Lenape children during the so-called “hiding time,” (or the time of the Third Crow) as a reminder to never show their “Lenape face” outside of the home. The stakes for hiding were incredibly high – a history and continued threat of killings and forced removals loomed heavy – but adopting this strategy, along with covert methods of passing traditions down through generations, demonstrates the persistence of Lenape people and culture in their ancestral homeland. 

The Nation’s work today seeks to rebuild relationships and to make Lenape presence visible in the Lenapehoking, where for years visibility was dangerous.