< PreviousNative American Sites on the Philadelphia WaterfrontDouglas MooneyLenapehoking is the word that local Lenape (or Delaware) Indians gave to their ancestral homeland, a portion of which was located in the area that is today the city and county of Philadelphia.1 As used in this article, the phrase “traces of Lenapehoking” refers not only to the archaeological evidence—the artifacts—the native peoples who inhabited this homeland left behind, but also to the surviving remnants of the original landscape of Philadelphia—preserved fragments of the pre-colonial ground—within which these artifacts were found. Traces of LenapehokingLong before the founding of Philadelphia, Native American people made this area their home for many thousands of years, establishing their camps and villages along the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers, as well as beside the many streams that crossed the interior landscape. While it is not known for certain when the first indigenous people arrived in this region, archaeological evidence from sites in neighboring parts of New Jersey and Pennsylvania suggest that the earliest occupants arrived here by at least 10,000 to 12,000 years ago—at or near the end of the last Ice Age.2 However, discoveries from a handful of other sites, such as Meadowcroft Rockshelter near Pittsburgh and Cactus Hill in Virginia, suggest that people originally moved into this part of the country as early as 16,000 years ago.3 Even more recently discovered sites on the Delmarva Peninsula have produced information hinting that the first arrival could date back to more than 20,000 years ago.4 Despite the fact that Native American peoples have lived in this region for thousands of years—and created countless numbers of sites over that period—until about 25 years ago, most archaeologists working in the Philadelphia area assumed it was very unlikely that an intact Native American archaeological site would ever be found in the most densely developed parts of the city.5 Considering the more than 300 years of intensive development and physical transformation Philadelphia has experienced, the common acceptance of this expectation was perhaps understandable. Yet despite the massive disturbances brought about by expanding urbanization and industrialization, archaeological explorations conducted in the past two decades have succeeded in overturning earlier beliefs and interpretations, and have identified undisturbed fragments of the Native American landscape that existed “...with each new discovery, archaeologists are learning more important information about the Native American peoples...”Overview of the excavations of a Native American site found 7 feet beneath the floor of the former I. P. Morris Machine Shop #2 building (completed 1913) in Kensington-Fishtown. The foundations of three earlier mid-nineteenth-century industrial buildings—two lumber mills and a glassworks—also survived the construction of this massive factory complex. Photograph by George Cress, 2015.21 | Vol 1 | 2016 | River Chroniclesbefore there was a Philadelphia, along with intact artifact deposits Lenape Indians and their ancestors left behind in many parts of the city.6 These traces of Lenapehoking have been preserved in the nooks and crannies that have escaped impacts from historical development, and today can be found in open backyards, in parks and playgrounds, the ground beneath city streets, and other similar environments. While many of these protected spaces have been relatively small and contained only parts of what were once much larger native sites, other locations have preserved intact areas several acres in size and evidence of multiple complete occupations. Regardless of size or circumstance, with each new discovery, archaeologists are learning more important information about the Native American peoples who made their home here hundreds and even thousands of years before Europeans first arrived on these shores.7 The densest concentration of Native American sites in Philadelphia has been found along the banks of the Delaware River. Since 2008, AECOM archaeologists working on PennDOT’s I-95/GIR Improvement Corridor Project have discovered a total of 10 intact native sites in the present-day neighborhoods of Kensington-Fishtown and Port Richmond—an area the Lenape Indians called Shackamaxon.8 Amazingly, these sites have survived despite the fact that this section of the river was transformed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries into a center of industrial manufacturing that helped earn Philadelphia the nickname “Workshop of the World.” Despite the radical landscape transformation that accompanied the construction of places like the William Cramp & Sons Shipyard and the Port Richmond Coal Depot, these industrial complexes were frequently built over the original ground surface, without entirely destroying it. As a result, unexpected historical and cultural juxtapositions are often found in these locations, such as the discovery of intact native artifacts several thousand years old sitting next to the concrete foundations of factories built in the early 1900s.These 10 sites have been found in a variety of settings, ranging from near-surface soils preserved in the open yard spaces behind nineteenth-century houses to the margins of historical stream channels sealed beneath 10 or more feet of fill. One site was discovered just 200 feet away from Penn Treaty Park—the location where William Penn was believed to have signed a treaty of friendship with the Lenape Indians in 1682. The artifacts found near the park dated to several thousand years before the treaty, and so were not left behind by people who might have witnessed this historic event. However, they do testify to the fact that native peoples occupied this area for a much longer period of time than the City of Philadelphia has existed. (Right) Excavations of the Shackamaxon #2 Site (circa 2,500 B.C.), located directly across Delaware Avenue from Penn Treaty Park and preserved in a series of former residential backyards. The park is just visible in the upper left-hand corner of this image. Photograph by Kimberly Morrell, 2011.(Bottom) Members of the AECOM archaeological team carefully excavating and documenting a Native American hearth feature. Photograph by Jennifer Rankin, 2013. 22 | Vol 1 | 2016 | River ChroniclesMost of the sites found thus far are thought to have been used as short-term encampments, where small numbers of people stayed for perhaps just a few days at a time. While at these sites, native people hunted for game, foraged for plant foods, gathered needed raw materials, and made or repaired stone tools. Other sites discovered during this project have been much larger in size and are thought to represent either favored locations, revisited time and again for many hundreds or thousands of years, or larger campsites occupied by the members of a single extended family for a period of several weeks or months. So far, none of these sites are believed to represent examples of the small, seasonally occupied Indian villages or hamlets Europeans described during the earliest years of colonization. This does not mean that native hamlet sites do not still survive somewhere in Philadelphia; it only means that such sites have yet to be discovered. Archaeological excavations at these sites have produced approximately 50,000 artifacts manufactured, used, and discarded by native peoples over a period of several thousand years. Unfortunately, in this part of the country, ancient objects that were made of softer plant and animal materials—such as clothing, baskets, or fishing nets—typically do not survive in the ground for long periods of time. The artifacts that most commonly survive are those more durable objects made from stone or fired clay, such as stone tools and fragments of pottery. These sites have yielded a wide variety of skillfully crafted stone tools, including many different styles of projectile points (commonly referred to as “arrowheads”) and stone knives.Other tool forms recovered include drills, scrapers, adzes, and other woodworking pieces; hammerstones used to make other tools; and netsinkers used in fishing. Among the more beautiful objects found is a slate gorget with an elaborate incised decoration on one side and two drilled holes allowing it to be worn around the neck like a piece of jewelry. While this particular artifact likely held a special meaning for the person who wore it, the exact message it was intended to express is unknown today.In addition to these types of artifacts, archaeologists have also identified a series of intact hearth features, or firepits, at several sites. Marked by concentrations of cobbles and pebbles that have been cracked apart through contact with the heat of fire, these hearths also frequently contain remnants of wood charcoal that can be carbon-dated to more precisely determine when a camp was created. While the City of Brotherly Love is now an impressive 333 years old, C-14 dating of charcoal from the I-95 hearths has shown that native people lived in the Philadelphia area for more than 5,000 years. The oldest hearth feature discovered within the project area was carbon-dated to approximately 3563 B.C. As archaeological investigations for this project continue, additional—perhaps older—sites might be uncovered. A handful of recently excavated artifacts possess characteristics suggesting that they could date to earlier times, and might eventually be shown to come from native occupations as old as 6000–8000 B.C.24 | Vol 1 | 2016 | River ChroniclesDouglas Mooney is a senior archaeologist at AECOM and, along with George Cress, is the co-principal investigator for the I-95 Project. He has excavated a wide variety of sites throughout the Middle Atlantic, but since 1999 has worked predominantly in the Philadelphia area. Like the pieces of a huge jigsaw puzzle, the artifacts recovered from these sites along the Delaware River waterfront provide critical clues about how the native people who made these objects lived, and about how they interacted with, and adapted to, the world around them. Because the Lenape Indians and their ancestors left no documents or written records in their own language, archaeological exploration and documentation is one of the best ways to learn about native cultures as they existed before European contact. As research into these artifacts continues, we look forward to sharing what we have learned about Philadelphia’s Native American people through future articles in this journal. Until that time, we hope this helps to inform and remind readers of the incredible historical and cultural contributions of the native people who made this area their home. The Lenape Indians played a critical role in the creation of Philadelphia, and evidence of their continued heritage is all around us today (remember that next time you go to Manayunk, Conshohocken, or Passyunk). The archaeological sites now being discovered along the Delaware River waterfront are proof of the continued presence and vitality of that ancient Native American legacy.A selection of stone tools and other artifacts recovered from Native American sites along I-95. The artifacts shown here include netsinkers, a selection of projectile points (“arrowheads”), a clay pipe fragment, and a groundstone adze. Photograph by Thomas J. Kutys, 2015.Artifact Round UpIncised Two-Hole GorgetCirca A.D. 800 - 1550This is an ornamental artifact that Native Americans attached to clothing or wore as a type of pendant or necklace. Manufactured from a piece of ground and polished slate, this gorget features two hand-drilled holes and a series of incised geometric designs on one side and around its outer edges. The word gorget comes from the French word gorge, meaning “throat,” and originally described a piece of armor used to protect one’s neck and chest in battle. The term was later applied to this type of Native American artifact because of its perceived similarity in appearance to European military gorgets. Native Americans may have used gorgets not as armor, but rather as representations of tribal, family, or personal symbols or insignia—or as charms believed to possess earthly or supernatural powers. This particular artifact is thought to be associated with local Lenape (or Delaware Indian) people, but unfortunately, the exact meaning of the symbols decorating it remain unknown. - Douglas MooneyRiver Chronicles | Vol 1 | 2016 | 25This unusual moon man figurine emerged from the depths of a privy during excavations in the former backyard of a brick row home at 1018 Palmer Street in Kensington-Fishtown. His large moon head, exaggerated facial features, and costumed human body give this figure a cartoon-like quality. This bisque (unglazed) porcelain figurine was discarded in a privy, along with over 7,300 other domestic artifacts. Although time had faded his once brightly colored features, the lengthy stay underground did not dampen the moon man’s charming grin. This figurine was molded from white porcelain clay that captured every subtle detail of the moon man’s small form, down to his fingernails, the creases in his coat, and the strings on his mandolin. The lower portion of his right leg and part of the base were not recovered, suggesting that they may have been lost during some prior misadventure and disposed of elsewhere. The absence of a manufacturer’s mark hampered efforts to identify this figurine. Potteries often stamped or printed a distinctive symbol or mark on the back or base of figurines to identify the products of a specific factory. This figurine may have been marked on the missing pieces at the seat of his pants. Continued efforts to identify the moon man revealed an example from an auction site of the same figurine bearing the mark of the Schafer and Vater Porcelain Factory in Rudolstadt, Thuringia, Germany. The pottery, established in 1890 by Gustav Schafer and Gunther Vater, was known for producing household ceramics and figurines.1 The manufacturer’s mark used by Schafer and Vater consisted of a crown above a script letter “R” within a nine-pointed star.2 The factory was in operation until 1962.3 A United States Treasury tariff document shows that Schafer and Vater “Figures decoré, seconds” were being shipped to this country by 1899.4 Collector research states that by 1910, Sears, Roebuck and Company was importing and selling porcelain produced by the Schafer and Vater factory.5 Serenading Moon Man. Bisque porcelain figurine made by the Schafer and Vater Porcelain Factory in Rudolstadt, Thuringia, Germany, circa 1900. Photograph by Thomas J. Kutys, 2014.26 | Vol 1 | 2016 | River ChroniclesSERENADINGMOON MANThe curious tale behind the man in the moon.Rebecca L. WhiteBy examining other items made by Schafer and Vater, we discovered that the figurine excavated in Kensington-Fishtown was part of a series of moon men and sun-head women arranged in various romantic and leisurely poses. To date, we have found auction photographs that document four moon men and two sun women. In addition to the man with the mandolin, one moon man is reclining on his back smoking a pipe and reading a book. Another moon figurine is kneeling with a top hat in one hand and a bouquet of flowers extended in the other. The fourth moon man is lying on his stomach, eyes closed, with a small red bird perched on the tip of his crescent chin. An auction photograph included here shows examples with a mandolin and a red bird. The two seated sun ladies appear to be companion pieces to the moon men, with one playing a mandolin while the other has a small red bird sitting on her long skirt (facing page). Some Schafer and Vater moon and sun figures were marked with model numbers that range from 3150–3155.6 A recent auction offered a moon man playing a mandolin marked with the model number 3153. Photographs on auction sites also show the original painted colors of the figurine, which featured a bright yellow head, facial features and mandolin in brown, black lapels, and red dress slippers. The “man in the moon” and “Pierrot and the moon” were common themes in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This particular figurine with his costume and mandolin may have been inspired by the character Pierrot Lunaire that originated from seventeenth-century Commedia dell’arte in France. Pierrot Lunaire was the subject of a collection of poetry by the Belgian poet Albert Giraud in 1884 and the title of a melodramatic opera by composer Arnold Schoenberg in the early twentieth century. Variations of the moon man and Pierrot were also popular themes on French and German postcards from this time period. Schafer and Vater moon men. Image courtesy of Heritage Auction.This French postcard (circa 1900) shows Pierrot serenading Pierrette, who appears as the face of the moon. Author’s private collection.28 | Vol 1 | 2016 | River ChroniclesThe recovered figurine represents a piece of bric-a-brac, a term used during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries to define small ornaments of little value. Similar objects were commonly used in the parlor or sitting room to decorate a mantle or shelf. These small objects might have been gifts or souvenirs that were shifted from the front to the back or edge of the mantle over time to make room for newer acquisitions. Once these items were broken or lost their appeal, they were destined for the trash heap or relegated to the old privy that needed to be filled. While other households along the project area deposited similar broken ornaments into their privies, to date no other Schafer and Vater figurines have been recovered from the I-95 excavations.Despite his small stature, this moon man figurine from a privy in Kensington-Fishtown has achieved celebrity status in the twenty-first century. He has made appearances on fliers, posters, and in person at various public events and exhibits related to the I-95 archaeological project. Our interactive media team created a digital model of the moon man using a 3D scan, which you can view through the link below.Rebecca L. White has over 18 years’ experience in archaeological investigations and artifact analysis in the Middle Atlantic and Northeast. As senior research analyst at AECOM, she identifies and researches historic-period artifacts, prepares interpretive materials for assemblages, and participates in the design of artifact displays and museum exhibits. Schafer and Vater sun women. Image courtesy of Heritage Auction.Postcard printed in Germany in 1909. Author’s private collection.View the interactive Moon ManScan the QR CodeOr visit: http://diggingi95.com/moon-man/River Chronicles | Vol 1 | 2016 | 29Next >