Tamanend ("the Affable"; ), historically also known as Taminent, Tammany, Saint Tammany or King Tammany, was the Chief of Chiefs and Chief of the Turtle Clan of the Lenni-Lenape nation in the

Delaware Valley The Philadelphia metropolitan area, also known as Greater Philadelphia and informally called the Delaware Valley, the Philadelphia tri-state area, and locally and colloquially Philly–Jersey–Delaware, is a major metropolitan area in the Nor ...

signing the founding peace treaty with

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer, religious thinker, and influential Quakers, Quaker who founded the Province of Pennsylvania during the British colonization of the Americas, British colonial era. An advocate of democracy and religi ...

. Also called a "Patron Saint of America", Tamanend represented peace and amity, and became a popular figure in 18th-century America, especially in Philadelphia. A Tammany society founded in Philadelphia holds an annual Tammany festival. Tammany societies (

Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was an American political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789, as the Tammany Society. It became the main local ...

being the most well-known and influential) were established across the United States after the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, and Tammany assumed mythic status as an icon for the peaceful politics of negotiation.

Life and legend

Tamanend reputedly took part in a meeting between the leaders of the Lenni-Lenape nation, and the leaders of the Pennsylvania colony held under a large elm tree at Shakamaxon in the early 1680s. William Penn and Tamanend continued to sign seven more documents assuring each other, and their peoples, of peaceable understanding after the initial one in 1683. Tamanend is recorded as having said that the Lenni-Lenape and the English colonists would "live in peace as long as the waters run in the rivers and creeks and as long as the stars and moon endure." These words have been memorialized on the statue of Tamanend that still stands in Philadelphia. It is believed that Tamanend died in 1701. Over the next century, many folk legends surrounded Tamanend, and his fame assumed mythical proportions among the people of Philadelphia, who began to call him "King Tammany", "Saint Tammany", and the "Patron Saint of America". The people of Philadelphia organized a Tammany society and an annual Tammany festival. These traditions soon spread across America. Tammany's popular status was partly due to the desire by colonists to express a distinct "American" identity, in place of their former European nationalities. Tammany provided an apt symbol for this kind of patriotism. Because of Philadelphia's prominence during the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

and subsequent decades, Tammany soon became a national symbol throughout much of the newly formed country. Several of Tamanend's grandchildren became important Lenape chiefs and warriors, including

Pisquetomen Pisquetomen (died 1762)Nenatcheehunt, Shingas and Tamaqua.Benjamin Franklin, Pennsylvania, and the First Nations: The Treaties of 1736-62. Ukraine: University of Illinois Press, 2006.
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Legacy

Tammany Societies

In 1772, the original Tammany Society was formed in Philadelphia. It was called the "Sons of King Tammany" but was later renamed the "Sons of St. Tammany". Soon, Tammany societies were organized in communities from Georgia to Rhode Island, and west to the

Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...

. The most famous of these was New York City's Society of St. Tammany, whose members developed an influential

political machine In the politics of representative democracies, a political machine is a party organization that recruits its members by the use of tangible incentives (such as money or political jobs) and that is characterized by a high degree of leadership c ...

known as "

". A white marble statue of Tamanend adorned the

façade A façade or facade (; ) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loanword from the French language, French (), which means "frontage" or "face". In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important asp ...

of the building on East 14th Street that housed Tammany Hall.

Tammany Festivals

By the early 1770s, annual Tammany Festivals were being held in Philadelphia and Annapolis. The festivals were held on May 1, replacing the

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the Northern Hemisphere's March equinox, spring equinox and midsummer June solstice, solstice. Festivities ma ...

traditions of Europe but continuing popular folk traditions. For example, the Saint Tammany Day celebrated on May 1, 1771, in

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

had a may pole decorated with ribbons. People danced in American Indian style to music while holding a ribbon and moving in a circle around the pole. On May 1, 1777,

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

wrote of the Tammany festival in Philadelphia during the American Revolutionary War. Adams, who was in Philadelphia attending the

Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress (1775–1781) was the meetings of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolution and American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, which established American independence ...

as a delegate from Massachusetts, wrote a letter home to his wife Abigail Adams, which said:

This is King Tammany's Day. Tammany was an Indian King, of this part of the Continent, when Mr. Penn first came here. His court was in this town. He was friendly to Mr. Penn and very serviceable to him. He lived here among the first settlers for some time and until old age. ... The people here have sainted him and keep his day.

On May 1, 1778, General

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

and the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

held a Tammany festival while camped at

Valley Forge Valley Forge was the winter encampment of the Continental Army, under the command of George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. The Valley Forge encampment lasted six months, from December 19, 1777, to June 19, 1778. It was the t ...

. The "men spent the day in mirth and jollity...in honor of King Tammany" (''Military Journal of George Ewing,'' 1928). After the end of the Revolutionary War, Tammany celebrations spread throughout the United States, including to

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Brita ...

. Local societies promoted annual festivals, usually held on May 1. Tammany celebrations were such important events that, in 1785, George Washington appeared at the Tammany festival in Richmond, Virginia with Virginia governor

Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 ld Style and New Style dates, O.S. May 18, 1736une 6, 1799) was an American politician, planter and orator who declared to the Virginia Conventions, Second Virginia Convention (1775): "Give me liberty or give m ...

. The Tammany Society in New York City held its first festival in 1787. Developments in 2003
In 2003, two identical

concurrent resolution A concurrent resolution is a resolution (a legislative measure) adopted by both houses of a bicameral legislature that lacks the force of law (is non-binding) and does not require the approval of the chief executive ( president). Concurrent reso ...

s were introduced in the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

(Senate Concurrent Resolution 39 and House Concurrent Resolution 123) that sought to establish "St. Tammany Day" on May 1 as a national day of recognition. The Senate version was passed by unanimous consent. It was then referred for review in May 2003 to the Subcommittee on Civil Service and Agency Organization, which is a subcommittee of the House Committee on Government Reform. The Subcommittee took no action on the resolution, and it has not been reintroduced.

Dramatic and literary representations, and musical references

*In 1794, Ann Julia Hatton's opera, ''Tammany: The Indian Chief'' premiered on Broadway and became highly popular. It featured the first major opera

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

written in the United States that had an American theme, and it was the earliest drama about ethnic Americans. The opera premiered at the John Street Theatre, New York, on March 3, 1794, featuring English actress and 'grande dame' of American theatre, Charlotte Melmoth. Melmoth refused to speak the opera's epilogue, as she disapproved of its patriotic sentiments. The ''New York Journal'' called on the public to boycott the opera as long as Melmoth was still in the cast. *In 1826, Tammany was featured (as "Tamenund") in the conclusion of '' The Last of the Mohicans'' (1826), a novel by

James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was an American writer of the first half of the 19th century, whose historical romances depicting colonial and indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries brought h ...

which became extremely popular in the

antebellum Antebellum, Latin for "before war", may refer to: United States history * Antebellum South, the pre-American Civil War period in the Southern US ** Antebellum Georgia ** Antebellum South Carolina ** Antebellum Virginia * Antebellum architectu ...

United States. The novel was part of his '' Leatherstocking Tales'', a series of works that explored the colonial past, with strong influence on American literary culture and the emerging nation's identity. (Tamenund is depicted as elderly, and a relic of the past, but in 1757 — the year in which the novel is set — he was in fact more than half a century dead.) *In 1912, James E. Gaffney, a member of New York's

, purchased the Boston Rustlers baseball team and renamed them the Boston Braves, using Tamanend's image as their primary logo. *In 1932, Boston was granted an NFL franchise which took the Boston Braves name and image from its landlord at

Braves Field Braves Field was a baseball park located in Boston, Massachusetts. Today the site is home to Nickerson Field on the campus of Boston University. The stadium was home of the Boston Braves of the National League from 1915 to 1952, prior to the ...

. When the team moved to

Fenway Park Fenway Park is a ballpark located in Boston, Massachusetts, less than one mile from Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home field of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Boston Red Sox. While the stadium was built in 1912, it was substantia ...

in 1936, it renamed itself the Redskins in homage to their new landlord, the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

. The Redskins name and Tamanend image travelled with them when they moved to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

in 1937. The team has since changed their name. *A statue of an American Indian identified as Tamanend is shown outside

in the film '' Gangs of New York'' (2002). *The musician

Joanna Newsom Joanna Newsom (born January 18, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. After recording and self-releasing two EPs in 2002, Newsom signed to the independent label Drag City (record label), Drag City. Her debut album, ''The Milk-Eyed ...

, in the song "Sapokanikan" from her 2015 album '' Divers'' refers to both King Tamanend and Tammany Hall. *Though not named in dialogue, Tamanend appears at the end of the 1992 film adaptation of '' The Last of The Mohicans'', played by Mohawk actor Mike Phillips.

Statues, monuments, and memorials

*'' Tamanend'', an 1817 wooden sculpture by William Luke, was the figurehead of the warship USS ''Delaware''. The ship burned during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, but the figurehead was rescued and put on display at the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...

. In the 1930s, a bronze replica was installed on campus in front of

Bancroft Hall Bancroft Hall, at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, Annapolis, Maryland, is said to be the largest contiguous set of academic dormitories in the U.S. Bancroft Hall, named after former United States Secretary of the Navy, U. ...

, where each day the Brigade of Midshipmen forms for Noon Meal Formation. One of the most cherished traditions at the academy is the painting of the statue in the days before football games or other prominent events. The original figurehead is in the U.S. Naval Academy Museum. *''Tamanend'', a 1995 bronze statue by Raymond Sandoval, is located at the intersection of Front and Market Streets, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The plaque notes that "Tamanend was considered the patron saint of America by the colonists prior to American Independence."

Namesakes

* St. Tammany Parish (established ) is one of nine Louisiana parishes (counties) named for "saints;" it is the only one whose namesake is not a Christian "saint" as recognized by the Roman Catholic Church. * Mount Tammany is the name of the prominence on Kittatinny Mountain on the northeast (New Jersey) side of the Delaware Water Gap. * "Tammany Regiment" was the nickname of the New York 42nd Infantry during the American Civil War. Its monument on the

Gettysburg Battlefield The Gettysburg Battlefield is the area of the July 1–3, 1863, military engagements of the Battle of Gettysburg in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Locations of military engagements extend from the site of the first shot & at Knoxlyn Ridge ...

includes an 1891 statue of Tamenend by John J. Boyle. * Tamanend Middle School, Central Bucks School District, Pennsylvania, was named for him. * Bracey, Virginia, was originally named St. Tammany. * St. Tammany Masonic Lodge #5, was chartered in Hampton, Virginia in 1759. * Todd Tamanend Clark, poet and composer, was born in 1952 in Greensboro, Pennsylvania. * Tamanend's bottlenose dolphin, a species of dolphin inhabiting coastal waters along the eastern United States.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tamanend Lenape people 1620s births 1700s deaths 17th-century Native American leaders