Before the Jersey Devil became one of New Jersey’s most famous legends, the Pine Barrens held older stories—warnings rooted in Lenape history, colonial fear, and early American folklore. In this episode, we explore the origins of the Jersey Devil legend before its 19th-century “birth,” tracing how the Pine Barrens gained their eerie reputation long before the name appeared in print.

We follow the disappearance of merchant Hendrick van Driesen, a horse returning without its rider, and how that mystery—combined with Lenape teachings about forest boundaries—evolved into a rumored “presence” in the Pines. We examine how Benjamin Franklin’s colonial print culture helped preserve the story, and how Alexander Hamilton later weaponized that fear during the Revolutionary War as Hessian soldiers marched through New Jersey.

This is the Jersey Devil before the creature had wings, hooves, or a Leeds-family origin story. Before the legend had a name, the land itself carried the fear.

Before the Devil had a name… the forest noticed.

#NewJerseyHistory #JerseyDevilOrigins #PineBarrens #LenapeHistory #AmericanRevolution #FolkloreHistory #BenjaminFranklin #AlexanderHamilton

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Bibliography:

Franklin, Benjamin. Poor Richard Improved. Philadelphia, 1749.

— Franklin’s printed commentary on fear and superstition.

Baer, Friederike. Hessians: German Soldiers in the American Revolutionary War. Oxford University Press, 2022.

— Context on Hessian troops during the Revolution.

Grumet, Robert S. The Munsee Indians: A History. University of Oklahoma Press, 2009.

— Cultural background on Lenape/Munsee communities.