The Nanticoke and Lenape tribes acquired their ancestors’ land in Delaware

In the 1600s, Coker said, the Lenape tribe numbered between 4,000 and 5,000 people, and they could be found as far south as southeastern New York and in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. But after European contact, disease, war, and the takeover of their land, their population plummeted by 90%, according to Coker. Over time, Coker said, more Lenapes left the East Coast because of “pressure from the settlers” and moved to Oklahoma, Michigan and Canada.