Return to Tamanend Park

Thanks to Katy for the great photos. I left my camera and my diabetes supplies at home in my pocketbook.This is the park where we have our fantastic Bonfires!

Ah, here's Chief Tamanend now, in Benjamin West's painting Penn's "Treaty with the Indians." William Penn, the good Quaker, was in disfavor over in England, so to get rid of him, the king granted him land in America.

The treaty, legend has it, was signed under an elm tree in an area called Shackamaxon, in what is now the Port Richmond, Fishtown, and Kensington sections of Philadelphia. Today there is a Shackamaxon Street plus small sign.

 Tamanend Park has a third-generation elm from the Treaty Elm on Shackamaxon Street. Many years ago before you were born, or even before I was born, I had snipped a few leaves off Tamanend's elm, and hung them on my far living room wall.

The intrepid walkers are Leslie, Scott and myself and Katy.

Leslie bot a beautiful Walking Stick at LL Bean in King of Prussia.

I had a cousin Leslie once. Born with the cord wrapped around his neck, he was developmentally challenged. My Aunt Tay (my grandmother's younger sister) sent him to boarding school in CT. I met him only once, since they lived in NY State. A very gentle man. Like my own challenged brother, David.

About 25 years ago, Leslie and his friends were being driven somewhere in CT when a tornado hurled down and struck the car.

Everyone was killed instantaneously.

The only danger I was scared of during the walk was:  Getting lost. So I marked our path by urinating at the crosspoints, not realizing we were going around in a huge circle.

On the way, we met this talkative fellow - a mailman - out walking with his two dogs. This one is part Beagle.

Hello Pugsy!

The dogs were hot and panting furiously. The mailman said he got Lyme disease from walking in this park. He has the arthritic joints in one of his hands.

I just takes me chances.

"I thought it was you, Tommy" said Scott to his retired SEPTA buddy Tommy Ellingsworth. He was walking the woods with his wife Nancy.

Pond with algae at Tamanend Park. Nearby was an herb garden.

My favorite part, though, were the rocks inscribed with native American names. And the best one of all:

 After our walk, we dined in fine style in one of the two pavilions on the Tamanend meadow.

I shared my watermelon with everyone and peanuts in the shell, foods I'm sure the great Chief would have enjoyed.

Tamanend is reported to have announced 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."