Indigenous History in Bucks County
Bucks County rests on land rich with Indigenous history and cultural roots. Several attractions invite you to explore the stories of the first peoples and discover their lasting presence and contributions through the experiences below.
Local trails and educational programs offered by various Bucks County historical societies provide opportunities to learn about traditional practices, artifacts, and the enduring cultural legacy of the region’s first peoples. Find upcoming events here. You can also explore these sites through the interactive Lenape Trail map, designed to help visitors connect with the people, places, and stories that shaped this important history.
Situated along the Delaware River, or Lenapewihittuck in the Lenape language, sits William Penn's 17th century, 43-acre estate, now known as Pennsbury Manor. This site is also a significant part of Lenape homelands and history. The Nations of Lenape (Delaware) people today maintain an enduring relationship with these lands and with Pennsbury Manor, whose staff has worked in allyship on important cultural and educational initiatives. During your visit, be sure to view the reproduced letter William Penn wrote to the Lenape and learn more about his historical relationship with the Lenape people.
Located in Churchville, the Churchville Nature Center is the county's first nature center, providing education on the environment, as well as the unique opportunity to experience a Lenape Village. The Lenape Village is a hands-on, outdoor exhibit that gives visitors the opportunity to experience some of the life and history utilized by pre-European contact Native Americans.
What was once occupied by the Lenape Tribe, now sits the Erwin-Stover House and Barn, located along the Delaware River in Upper Black Eddy. As a part of the tour, visitors will learn about the history of the Lenape who lived in the region before European settlement, the impact of those settlers on their way of life, and the tools the Lenape used.
Durham Mill and Furnace
On October 8, 1734, James Logan, William Penn’s land agent, and Penn’s son, Thomas, met with Lenape leaders at the Durham Mill and Furnace to negotiate the purchase of additional land. This meeting was part of a series of negotiations that led to the controversial Walking Purchase. Although the furnace is not there anymore, visitors can still go to the area and see the mill by contacting the Durham Historical Society.
Graystones
Before shaking hands over the famous Treaty of Shackamaxon, William Penn’s representatives and Lenape leaders first met in present-day Morrisville, Bucks County to negotiate Pennsylvania’s original land-purchase survey.
That event is honored at Graystones, a historical marker at Crown Street and Highland Avenue consisting of a large rock display marking the site of the agreement signed under a long-gone oak tree and the entrance to six acres of Graystones Forest preserved woods.
Situated in a grassy median surrounded by a quiet residential neighborhood, the site features a bronze plaque accompanying the 20-foot high outcropping of gray bedrock protruding from the ground.
Henry Chapman Mercer - a prominent archaeologist, anthropologist, historian and ceramist - founded Bucks County’s Mercer Museum to house his remarkable collection of pre-industrial tools, early manual technologies and crafts related to American life before mechanization. Among the Museum’s collections are numerous Indigenous artifacts - chiefly archaeological materials - dating from approximately 8000 BCE to 1600 CE.
While it seemed William Penn strived for peace with and respect for the local Lenape nation, his sons did not follow suit after Penn’s death, as evidenced by the infamous 1737 Walking Purchase for 1.2 million acres of land. Although it was historically considered a treaty, it was not a fair agreement.
Pennsylvania proprietors and Penn’s sons presented a misleading document to the Lenape leaders, falsely claiming that Penn already owned a parcel of land that they desired to seize.
The difficult history of the Walking Purchase land and its associated agreements can be explored by uncovering historical markers throughout Bucks County in Springtown, Ottsville, Wrightstown and Washington Crossing. Many of the markers, however, problematically exclude the Lenape perspective.
