Meet Ciara Williams, our Lenape Research Fellow!

Last spring, Bartram’s Garden began the search to find our very first Lenape Research Fellow. The creation of this fellowship project was to answer a deep need that we have as a public, historic garden that carries a colonial legacy on Lenape land, and as one that seeks to manage its ecosystems in ways that are sustainable, adaptable, holistic, and reparative: the goal of this fellowship is to support the process of recovering and building a body of knowledge relating to Lenape Traditional Ecological Knowledge about land care for this region. 

 Supporting this area of inquiry is further intended as a reparative action for the attempted genocide and displacement of the Lenape and the havoc wrought on this land and water by the project of colonialism, which is a part of the Bartrams’ legacy. There is no way to right the damage that occurred, yet we acknowledge these grave injustices and seek to learn from a way of life that was nearly destroyed. We recognize the Lenape as the rightful past, present, and future caretakers of this land, with millennia of presence in Lenapehoking, and we are also aware that much Indigenous traditional ecological knowledge in this area has been buried in the depths of colonization. 

We’re thrilled to introduce Ciara Williams as our Lenape Research Fellow! Ciara is a researcher, facilitator, and organizer from Chester, PA. Get to know a bit more about her below and stay tuned for more ways to learn about Ciara’s research as the Fellowship progresses.  

As our Lenape Research Fellow, Ciara works closely with members of the Garden’s staff and with a stipended Advisory Committee comprised of experts from throughout the country, including citizens and friends of Native communities. The Council selected Ciara from a competitive applicant pool and meets quarterly to hear progress from the Fellow, inform their next steps, and make collective decisions about sharing information and resources. 

Tell us a little about your background. What is your past and current work? 

Currently a PHD candidate at Harvard, studying 18th– and 19th-century environmental history. My work is guided by rivers, following paths of rivers to learn about human and more-than-human interactions. I’m interested in how rivers shape patterns of settlement and commerce. I’m especially interested in how the environment underpins negotiations and conflicts over space. 

My work has always been connected to the Chester and Philadelphia area. Prior to starting my PHD, I’ve held a variety of roles, all within the environmental sector. I’ve worked in Philadelphia city government’s Office of Sustainability, Mural Arts Philadelphia, and PLAN: The Post-Landfill Action Network. However, I got my start as an environmental justice organizer in Chester, PA. Coming from Chester, I was greatly inspired by my city’s rich history and present of community organizing and was compelled to get involved. 

What does your research for the Lenape Research Fellowship entail? What does it mean to be the Lenape Research Fellow? 

My research begins more broadly with a survey into the time period of focus. For the Lenape Research Fellowship, I began with the 17th century and am gradually moving into the 19th century. With Lenapehoking as my starting point, I’ve gone as far as the Mississippi and Susquehanna river valleys. I work closely with the team at Bartram’s Garden and the Lenape Advisory Panel to continue to focus my research so that it can inform how Bartram’s Garden is interpreted today and how the history of the Garden fits within the broader context of settler and Native history. The bulk of my time is spent on research, using both digital sources and visiting relevant archives. 

How will this research inform the way that Bartram’s Garden works? How will it inform the Garden’s storytelling about the history of the land and the people who have inhabited it? 

My research is designed to broaden the narrative scope of Bartram’s Garden by situating the Garden within colonial and Native History. My research is guided by the following three commitments: 1) Telling a dynamic story of the land and connecting to its past and present in order to shape its future, 2) Connecting with Bartram’s Garden as a place and highlighting how Bartram’s Garden is connected to other places, and 3) Engaging with Lenape history independent of Bartram’s Garden and the Bartram family. My hope is that my research will inform how people experience the Garden and how we tell the story of the Garden and its contributors. 

How do you work with the Advisory Committee? 

The Advisory Panel meets quarterly to discuss research findings and to offer direction and input for future research. 

Ciara meeting with members of the Lenape Advisory Committee.

Do you have a favorite place at Bartram’s Garden or in Lenapehoking? 

There are trees scattered throughout the city that I like to visit: apple, paw paw, silk tree, paper mulberry, black walnut, etc. Some don’t appear to have been planted intentionally, while others have been planted as part of development and street scaping. It’s fun to see what springs up and thrives in Philly’s different microclimates, and it’s also rewarding to think about the logic that goes into what gets planted where and how that logic shifts over time. The Philly environment reflects historical local and global connections that aided in the intentional and unintentional transfer of plant life. 

How can people learn more about this work? Are there future opportunities for public engagement? 

We’re still relatively early on in the research process, so the bulk of our work is internally facing. Stay tuned for future updates and opportunities to learn more! 

Thanks, Ciara!