Black Creek Site festival and pow wow rescheduled

Rained out event is on for this Sunday Vernon — Due to the rain last Sunday, the Third Annual Black Creek Festival and Pow Wow has been rescheduled to Sunday, Oct. 4. Sponsored by the Vernon Township Historical Society and the Nanticoke Lenni Lenape Indians of New Jersey, the event will take place in Maple Grange Park on Maple Grange Road from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event is open to the public. Guided tours of the historic site are at 11 a.m., 1 and 3 p.m. All other events will be continuous throughout the day. The event will feature American Indian dancing and regalia; authentic historic Lenape displays and interpretation by Lenape Lifeways; Indian foods by Sly Fox Den; Indian art, jewelry, crafts; storytelling; guided tours of the historic site; authentic artifacts and other archaeological displays, food and merchandise vendors, children’s crafts and games; and entertainment for all ages. The highlight of the event will be the Lenape drum and dance in full regalia, featuring the Red Blanket Drum Corps of the Nanticoke Lenni Lenape Indians of Bridgeton. Their Grand Entrance Ceremony will be held at noon. The dedication of the new historic marker for the Black Creek Site will follow. There is a suggested donation of $5 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens. Children under 5 are admitted free. No one will be turned away. There is free onsite parking for the event. For information, call the Society at 973-764-8554; vendors who want to be onsite can download a vendor application at www.vernonhistoricalsociety.com and bring it with you to the event and pay at that time.

The Black Creek Site is located on Maple Grange Road, adjacent to the Maple Grange Community Park. The site is listed on the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places and is considered one of the most significant prehistoric American Indian sites in the state. It is one of only four American Indian sites listed on the New Jersey Register. Artifacts recovered from the site, which will be on display, give evidence that the site was occupied from the Early Archaic Period (8,000 B.C.) to the Late Woodland Period contact with Europeans (1600s). For information about the event, call the Society at 973-764-8554.