In "Before the Devil Had Wings," Episode 1, we trace the origins of an old Lenape legend—the Watcher in the Pines—and follow how it changed as it moved through colonial taverns, travelers’ tales, and eventually Benjamin Franklin’s Philadelphia print shop. A story about how folklore transforms when cultures collide. You can guess where this is going...
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Lenape History & Culture
• Herbert C. Kraft – The Lenape: Archaeology, History, and Culture
• C.A. Weslager – The Delaware Indians: A History
• New Jersey DEP – “Lenape Lifeways” overview
Pine Barrens Background
• John McPhee – The Pine Barrens
• Howard Boyd – A Field Guide to the Pine Barrens of New Jersey
Colonial New Jersey
• Marc Mappen – Jerseyana (folklore + early New Jersey)
• John Cunningham – This Is New Jersey
Franklin & Colonial Print Culture
• The Papers of Benjamin Franklin – founders.archives.gov
• William Nelson – “Daniel Leeds and His Almanacs” (NJ Historical Society)